What Is Article V?

The idea that the United States Constitution would need a mechanism for change came with the very idea of the Constitution itself. The framework of the Constitution was “The Virginia Plan,” developed by James Madison and presented at the Constitutional Convention by Virginia delegate Edmund Randolph. It contained a provision for the states to amend the Constitution, without the consent of the national legislature. The matter of who should amend the Constitution became an area of contention among the delegates. The out-numbered Anti-Federalists (the term for those wary of an overly powerful central government) feared the possibility of a corrupt legislature, and wanted the states and the people to have the sole power to change the Constitution. The Federalists favored a strong central government because of a mistrust of too much democracy. They feared an emotionally charged populace could whimsically change the Constitution, and believed Congress should have sole amendment power.

The amendment issue was set aside until the convention neared adjournment. By then the delegates were ready to go home, so they quickly reached a compromise. What became Article V of the Constitution laid out the means to make amendments. It was intentionally designed to make it difficult to do so. The Constitution can be amended in two ways. If two-thirds of both houses of Congress approve an amendment, it is then forwarded on to the states for ratification. Or, if two-thirds of state legislatures (34) apply for a convention to propose amendments, one “shall” be called by Congress. In either case, three-quarters of state legislatures (38) must approve the amendment(s), whether proposed by Congress or a convention, to become part of the Constitution.

The amendment process is extraordinarily daunting. Even though thousands of amendments have been proposed within Congress, only 27 have been ratified, and ten of those were the Bill of Rights. Since then, the Constitution has been changed only 17 times. There has never been a convention to propose amendments, in spite of the fact that the two-thirds of the states requirement has long ago been met. For an excellent discussion of Congress unconstitutionally ignoring these amendment applications, see the website for Friends of an Article V Convention, FOAVC.org.