The Amendment Process?

Question

1. Which amendment is the only one that actually amended another amendment?


2. Which methods of proposing and ratification have 26 of the 27 amendments been adopted by?


3. Which amendment is the only one not to have been adopted by the methods in question 2 above AND which methods of proposing and ratification were used?

Answer 1

1. Amendment 14, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by section 1 of the 26th amendment.

14th Amd Section 2
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being TWENTY-ONE years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.

26th Amd Section 1
The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.

2. In recent history, the signing of the certification has become a ceremonial function attended by various dignitaries, which may include the President. President Johnson signed the certifications for the 24th and 25th Amendments as a witness, and President Nixon similarly witnessed the certification of the 26th Amendment along with three young scholars.

3. On May 18, 1992, the Archivist performed the duties of the certifying official for the first time to recognize the ratification of the 27th Amendment, and the Director of the Federal Register signed the certification as a witness.

Answer 2

Start with Article V, which describes the Amendment process.

Then look at the text of the Amendments. I'll give you a hint.... prohibition against alcohol was repealed. I remember the numbers with the saying "You can't drink when you're 18, but you can when you're 21."

As for the special case, here's a tidbit. There were originally 12 Amendments proposed as the Bill of Rights. Ten got ratified immediately. One got ratified in 1992.

The rest should be easy to figure out by reading the appropriate sections of the Constitution.