After the Election of 1800, Congress proposed the Twelfth Amendment to change how the Electoral College chooses the president and vice president. The states approved the amendment in 1804. It fixed problems that became clear as political parties grew more important in American politics.
Before the Twelfth Amendment, each elector cast two votes for president. The person with the most electoral votes became president. The person with the second-highest number of votes became vice president. This system was made before political parties existed. As parties grew, candidates often ran together as a team. This made the old system harder to use and caused new problems during elections.
The Twelfth Amendment changed this system by requiring electors to cast separate votes for president and vice president. Electors now clearly state which candidate they support for each office. The amendment also requires electors to prepare separate lists of votes for president and vice president and to send those results to the federal government so the votes can be officially counted.
To become president or vice president, a candidate must win a majority of the electoral votes. If no candidate wins a majority, the House of Representatives selects the president. They pick from the three candidates with the most electoral votes. In this process, each state gets one vote, no matter how many people live there. A majority of the states must agree on a winner.
The amendment also established a process for selecting a vice president if no candidate wins a majority of electoral votes. In that case, the Senate picks the vice president from the two candidates with the most electoral votes.
The Twelfth Amendment also states that anyone ineligible to serve as president cannot serve as vice president. In addition, if no vice-presidential candidate receives a majority of electoral votes, the Senate chooses the vice president from the two candidates who received the most electoral votes. These rules made the process for choosing offices clearer. They also helped avoid some issues that existed in the original system.
