American Constitution
The founding fathers recognized the need for future officials to add amendments to the Constitution. Unlike a bill passed by Congress, or act issued by a President, an amendment requires a special process not easily overturned unless by another amendment. There are currently 27 amendments to the American Constitution. Congress can pass an amendment through one of three measures. The amendment needs to be introduced into congress and approved by two-thirds of both the Senate and House of Representative, then delivered to the state to approve. A special convention can be convened to ratify an amendment. Or, state legislatures can call for Congress to issue a constitutional convention with two-thirds support.
* The first ten amendments were passed in conjunction and commonly referred to as the Bill of Rights. They deal with specific issues of inherent right that the Constitution did not explicitly state. James Madison sponsored the Bill of Rights and was a champion of their intent even prior to the ratification of the Constitution.
* Following the Bill of Rights, only one other occasion warranted the passage of more than one amendment at the same time. Commonly referred to as the Civil War amendments, amendments thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen were passed immediately following the Civil War. The thirteenth amendment explicitly outlawed slavery while the fifteenth disallowed voting discrimination based on race. The fourteenth amendment is known to be the most important amendment following the Bill of Rights due to its widespread application and inclusion of due process of law offering equal protection to all citizens.
* Although the Civil War amendments extended voting rights, women were still not allowed to vote until well into the 20th century. Ratified in 1920, the nineteenth amendment disallowed any discrimination of voting rights on the basis of sex, finally granting women suffrage and widespread voting inclusion under law.
* The only time a special convention was issued to ratify an amendment was in response the the twenty-first amendment. In 1919, an amendment was issued to instill prohibition laws disallowing the consumption of alcohol. The failure of this amendment to inspire any real national change beyond granting another economic incentive to mobs, cause the repeal of this amendment through the twenty-first amendment. In 1933, prohibition was repealed marking the first time state conventions ratified a Constitutional amendment.
The Constitution can change at any time due to the power of amendments, but considering the polarizing split in Congress another amendment anytime soon does not seem likely
