The Effects of the Constitution's 20th Amendment

Presidential and Congressional Term Length

Prior to the 20th Amendment the president-elect and newly elected members of congress needed to wait until March 4 before taking office. This created a long waiting period between the November elections that included a short congressional session convening between early January and March 4. This session, affectionately known as the "Lame Duck Session" was much too short for Congress to accomplish anything. The 20th Amendment moved the Presidential Inauguration to Jan. 20 and called for Congressional terms to end Jan. 3.

The second part of the 20th Amendment specifically calls for Congress to convene at noon on Jan. 3 each year unless they choose a different time or day to be appointed by law. With a specified term ending for members of Congress and a definite start for Congress to convene, the 20th Amendment successfully ended the lame duck session that previously took place in the early part of the year. This allowed Congress to delve right into important matters in early January.

Part three of the 20th Amendment clearly spells out succession in the event that a new president dies or resigns after his election but prior to his inauguration. The vice president would become president and Congress would have authority if the vice president died or resigned. The House of Representatives was responsible for choosing a presidential successor while the Senate was in charge of appointing a vice presidential successor.

During the time of the Cold War, or the nuclear arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union, the U.S. government became concerned that there could be a nuclear attack on Washington, D.C. The realization that the 20th Amendment only covered what would happen if both the president and the vice president died, promoted the creation of the 25th Amendment, which further spells out presidential succession. If the president dies, the vice president replaces him. If the vice president dies or resigns, the president may choose a successor to be approved by Congress and the vice president may also temporarily replace the president with the approval from the majority of cabinet members.