While the Constitution laid out all of the formal requirements for individuals to run for office, it left most of the details of organizing and holding elections up to the states. When the Constitution was written, it stated that, “The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six Years; and each Senator shall have one Vote.” While this process of allowing Senators to be appointed by state legislatures worked during the early years of our country, growing concerns of corruption and unfair representation of voters meant that changes needed to be made. This is how the 17th Amendment was born.
Directions:
The links below will take you to a variety of different websites and resources detailing the history, impact, and importance of the 17th Amendment.
Using these sources, I want you to write a summary of the essentials of the 17th Amendment. You may find additional sources on your own, but you must provide a link to the source in your summary. (NO Wikipedia!)
Your summary must include:
- Basic Facts of the 17th Amendment: When it was proposed, when it was officially added to the Constitution, summary of what the Amendment says.
- What kinds of events/controversies influenced Congress to pass this Amendment?
- How did the addition of the 17th Amendment change Article I of the Constitution?
- How were elections held prior to the 17th Amendment? How did the Amendment change the electoral process?
- Agree/Disagree: After examining all of these sources, do you think the 17th Amendment was a necessary addition? Or do you think states know more about electing Senators than the general public and should still have that responsibility?
Sources
Kids Laws: The 17th Amendment
The United States Senate: “Direct Election of Senators”
The Constitutional Accountability Center: “Thanks to the 17th Amendment, Every Vote Will Count in Undecided Senate Races”
The National Archives: 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators
National Constitution Center: “What would the Senate look like in 2016 without the 17th Amendment?”
Congressional Districts, Redistricting and Gerrymandering
The Constitution mandates that Congressional districts must be redrawn according to Census data each year in order to ensure that representation in the House of Representatives is equally distributed among the states. However, it is up to the states to determine what group is responsible for redrawing the boundaries and how the boundaries are drawn, leaving a lot of room for error and bias.
Directions:
The links below will take you to a variety of different websites and resources describing how Congressional districts are redrawn and how the practice of gerrymandering can affect representation.
Using these sources, I want you to write a brief summary that answers the questions below. You may find additional sources on your own, but you must provide a link to the source in your summary. (NO Wikipedia!)
Your summary must include:
- What is redistricting?
- Define gerrymandering. How are congressional districts affected by gerrymandering?
- Which group in Georgia is responsible for redrawing Congressional districts? (Check the Georgia Legislative Committees link)
- How does our Congressional District (13) compare with some other districts in the state? Choose two other districts and compare data such as population and ethnicity.
- Agree/Disagree:Looking at the map of Georgia’s current Congressional districts (114th Congress) and after examining Census data, do you think these districts are drawn fairly or unfairly? Why or why not?
Explanation of Gerrymandering by the Washington Post
Gerrymandering defined
Redistricting Q&A: ACLU
Redistricting in Georgia: Ballotopedia
Georgia Legislative Committees:
My Congressional District: Census.Gov