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The Constitution of the United States of America
Additional Amendments, Amendment XXIII, Section 1
Introduction:
Amendment XXIII of the U.S. Constitution grants residents of Washington, D.C. the right to vote in presidential elections. Specifically, Section 1 of this amendment states that the District of Columbia is to be treated as a state for the purposes of electing electors for President and Vice President, allowing its citizens to participate in the electoral process. This amendment was ratified in 1961, reflecting the desire to ensure that those living in the nation's capital have a voice in federal elections.
Actual Text:
“The District constituting the seat of Government of the United States shall appoint in such manner as the Congress may direct: A number of electors of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were a State, but in no event more than the least populous State; they shall be in addition to those appointed by the States, but they shall be considered, for the purposes of the election of President and Vice President, to be electors appointed by a State; and they shall meet in the District and perform such duties as provided by the twelfth article of amendment. ”
