Amendment XX
Ratified: January 23, 1933
Summary
Changes the dates for the start of presidential and congressional terms.
Full Text
Changes the date on which the terms of the President and Vice President and of members of Congress end and begin.
History and Context
Known as the 'Lame Duck' Amendment, the Twentieth Amendment was a practical fix to a logistical problem created by 18th-century technology. In the early days of the republic, travel was slow, so there was a long, four-month gap between the November elections and the start of a new presidential and congressional term in March. This created a long 'lame duck' period where the outgoing, and often defeated, politicians still held power. The Twentieth Amendment modernized the calendar, moving the start of the new presidential term to January 20th and the new congressional term to January 3rd, dramatically shortening the lame duck period and allowing the newly elected officials to take power much sooner.