Article V of the Constitution: How Amendments Are Proposed and Ratified

Article V outlines the two distinct paths for proposing and ratifying changes to the U.S. Constitution, ensuring a deliberate and difficult process.

By Garret Merkley · Explainer · Jun 13, 2026

Branched from The Role of State Conventions in U.S. Constitutional Amendments

Quick take

Article V details the two ways to propose a constitutional amendment and the two ways to ratify one.
Amendments can be proposed by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress or by a national convention called by two-thirds of state legislatures.
Ratification requires approval by three-fourths of state legislatures or by three-fourths of state conventions.
The process is designed to be difficult, requiring broad consensus to change the nation's foundational law.

Article V of the U.S. Constitution lays out the formal process for amending, or changing, the nation's foundational legal document. It provides a framework for how the Constitution can adapt over time, balancing the need for stability with the ability to respond to new challenges and societal shifts, but always requiring broad consensus.

Proposing an Amendment

There are two ways an amendment can be proposed, though one has been used far more often than the other throughout history.

**1. By Congress:** The most common method involves a vote in both chambers of the U.S. Congress. An amendment is proposed if it receives a two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives and a two-thirds vote in the Senate. This is how all 27 current amendments have been initially put forward.

**2. By National Convention:** The alternative method allows for state legislatures to initiate the proposal process. If two-thirds of the state legislatures (currently 34 out of 50) petition Congress, Congress must then call a national convention to propose amendments. This method has never actually been successfully used to propose an amendment, although there have been numerous calls for such conventions over the years for various purposes.

Ratifying an Amendment

Once an amendment has been proposed by either method, it must then be ratified. There are also two ways for ratification to occur, with Congress typically choosing which method will be used.

**1. By State Legislatures:** The most frequently used method for ratification requires three-fourths of the state legislatures (currently 38 out of 50) to vote in favor of the proposed amendment. All but one of the current amendments have been ratified this way.

**2. By State Conventions:** The second method requires three-fourths of the states to hold special ratifying conventions, and for these conventions to approve the amendment. This method has only been used once, for the 21st Amendment, which repealed the 18th Amendment (Prohibition). Congress chose this method at the time because it believed state conventions would be more likely to ratify the repeal than state legislatures, which were often seen as more conservative on the issue.

Article V is crucial because it provides a mechanism for peaceful, orderly change to the Constitution, preventing it from becoming an unchangeable relic while also protecting it from impulsive alterations. The high bar for both proposal and ratification ensures that only amendments with widespread support across different states and political viewpoints can succeed. This difficulty is a feature, not a bug, designed to ensure that fundamental changes to the nation's governing document reflect a broad national consensus and endure over time.

The Unused Paths

While both proposal methods (Congress or National Convention) and both ratification methods (state legislatures or state conventions) are equally valid under Article V, the national convention for proposal has never been successfully utilized.
Similarly, ratification by state conventions has only been used once, for the 21st Amendment. This highlights the practical preference for the congressional proposal and state legislature ratification routes.

Why is it so difficult to amend the Constitution?

The framers of the Constitution intentionally made the amendment process difficult to protect the document from fleeting public opinion or partisan whims. They wanted fundamental changes to reflect a broad and lasting national consensus, ensuring stability and preventing frequent, disruptive alterations to the nation's core laws.

Is there a time limit for ratification?

Congress typically includes a time limit for ratification within the proposed amendment itself, usually seven years. If an amendment isn't ratified by the required number of states within that timeframe, it fails. However, Congress isn't strictly required to set a time limit, and it has occasionally extended them or debated their legality.

Can an amendment be repealed?

Yes, an amendment can be effectively repealed by passing another amendment that specifically nullifies or supersedes it. This has only happened once with the 21st Amendment, which repealed the 18th Amendment (Prohibition).

What's the difference between a 'national convention' and a 'constitutional convention'?

In the context of Article V, a 'national convention' is called by Congress upon petition from two-thirds of state legislatures to *propose* amendments. A 'constitutional convention' (often debated as a 'Con-Con') is a broader term sometimes used to refer to a convention that might fundamentally rewrite the entire Constitution, which is a much more contentious and legally ambiguous concept than the specific Article V national convention.

Sources

U.S. Constitution, Article V
National Archives: The Constitutional Amendment Process