The Effect of the Twelfth  Amendment

by John Manimas Medeiros, April 2019

 

Explanation/interpretation (this is predictable in November 2020):  The adoption of the Twelfth Amendment is the basis for stating that when no Presidential candidate wins a majority of the electoral votes (270), the House of Representatives then selects the winning candidate.  But that phrase is a very misleading interpretation of the process.  BECAUSE, although the House of Representatives does conduct the vote, the actual votes are a total of 50, one vote from each state delegation.  And, the representatives elected by each state vary greatly in number, according to population.  Therefore, the process at this stage is absolutely not democratic.  For example, nine small states each have 3 Presidential electoral votes in the first stage, based on 2 Senators and 1 Representative in the House.  However, in the second stage, that 1 Representative will cast one (1) vote for the Presidential candidate they favor, AND the state of California, which has 53 Representatives in the House, will also cast one (1) vote for the candidate they favor.  There is reason to believe therefore, that if the Republican Party prevails in the number of House members from any state, then that state delegation's single vote will go for the Republican candidate.  Further, there is reason to believe that the state legislatures controlled by the Republican Party (and maybe also their Governor) will pressure their Representatives in the House to vote for the Republican Presidential candidate.  Although many states will have a majority of Democratic House members, it is most likely to be the larger industrial states with America's largest cities, whereby these higher numbers of House Representatives will still have only one (1) vote to benefit a favored Democrat.  The smaller states, which tend to be rural, agricultural and conservative, are more likely to have a majority of Republicans in their delegation to the House of Representatives.  These smaller numbers of Republican Representatives will then exercise power far out of proportion to their voting population, and states with a small number of Representatives will prevail in electing the Republican even if the Democrat received a far greater number of both popular AND electoral votes.  Look at the table of electors laws [Electoral College] and how many states have only a few electoral votes.  But they will have one vote at the second stage of the Presidential Election, the same measure of power of the larger states who have many Representatives but only one (1) vote for the Presidential candidate who they support.  People will not be happy if this happens as is predictable and spelled out here.  Here is a quick reference to the electoral votes table:  11 states, large states with large cities, have 270 electoral votes and therefore 248 House Representatives.  Those 248 representatives, even if they were all Democrats, would cast 11 votes for their Democratic candidate for President.  The smallest 30 states have 159 electoral votes, meaning 99 House Representatives, and they will cast 30 votes for their favored candidate.  If they are controlled by the Republican Party, they have already won the Presidential election, 30 to 20, (but by population the vote was 99 win against the losing 339 Representatives of the other 20 states).  Many people will be very, very dissatisfied with this process, because the two-party system has perpetuated the myth that the President is elected, when in fact the description in the federal Constitution is more like an appointment, or hiring of a President to function as the Chief Executive and Manager of the federal government bureaucracy.  The Republican candidate could win, of course, with the votes cast by the Representatives from just the 26 smallest states.  That would really make people crazy, especially those who think the President should be elected by the voters.  Would any Presidential candidate feel empowered by this process?  Looks like a formula for political disaster.  Alas!  The Founding Persons were human, and the American people have confused Presidential elections with American Idol.

 

Text of Amendment Twelve Below:

Amendment 12 [emphasis added to the two key phrases]

The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of

the Senate; [who is also the Vice-President of the United States]

 

The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted;  The person having the greatest Number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; [270 electoral votes] and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President.

 

The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.