Did you know that for the first 125 years of our nation's history, United States Senators were not directly elected by citizens?
From 1788 until 1913, senators were elected by the state legislatures. Upon doing some research, I came across an article regarding this in our National Archives.
In the late 1800s, the states were attempting to call an Article V convention to add an amendment that would allow for direct election of U.S. Senators. When they neared the necessary two-thirds needed, Congress gave in.
On April 8, 1913, after ratification by three-quarters of the states, the 17th Amendment calling for the direct election of U.S. Senators was made official.
Fast forward 104 years.
On December 5, 2017, Convention of States President Mark Meckler spoke to members of the Westside Republican Club in New York City. He describes how we have a “broken structure in America” that is contributing to the lack of congressional responsiveness.
“We do not have a personnel problem in Washington, D.C.," he explained. "We have a structure problem in Washington, D.C.,” directly related to the 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Listening to Mark's clearcut explanation is revealing and clarifying to be sure.
Could it be that our Founding Fathers were correct after all? Holding U.S. Senators accountable to the state legislatures may just be one of the solutions our country is desperately in need of to get us back on the right track.
This will most assuredly be a hot topic for debate when we reach the two-thirds threshold to convene an Article V Convention of States in the foreseeable future.
Happy New Year 2018 from Convention of States New York!
Share this article with your state legislators.
