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SJRES 7
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A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the election of Senators.

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the election of Senators.

Introduced Jan 29, 2009

Latest action (Aug 6, 2009) Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.

Referred to
Constitution Subcommittee Judiciary Committee Judiciary Committee
Policy area
Government Operations and Politics
Issues
Voting & Elections
Legislative subjects (4)
Constitution and constitutional amendmentsElections, voting, political campaign regulationMembers of CongressSenate

Summary

This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment requiring that all U.S. Senators be elected directly by the people of their state. The amendment would also require that when a Senate vacancy occurs, the state's governor must issue writs of election to fill the seat through an election, rather than through appointment. The amendment would not apply retroactively to Senators already in office at the time it is ratified. The resolution would need to be approved by two-thirds of both houses of Congress and then ratified by three-fourths of state legislatures within seven years to become part of the Constitution.

AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.

Sponsor (1)
3 cosponsors

Actions (5)
  1. Aug 6, 2009 Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably. · senate
  2. Mar 11, 2009 Committee on the Judiciary. Joint hearings held Subcommittee on The Constitution and Subcommittee on The Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 111-203. · senate
  3. Jan 29, 2009 Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. · senate
  4. Jan 29, 2009 Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1067-1069)
  5. Jan 29, 2009 Introduced in Senate

More bills on these subjects (8)

Other bills that carry the most legislative subjects in common with this one (topical discovery — distinct from the procedural related bills above).

  • HJRES 21 — Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the election of Senators. (shares 4 subjects)
  • SJRES 48 — A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to limit the number of terms an individual may serve as a Member of Congress. (shares 3 subjects)
  • S 51 — Washington, D.C. Admission Act (shares 3 subjects)
  • SJRES 1 — A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to limiting the number of terms that a Member of Congress may serve. (shares 3 subjects)
  • HR 51 — Washington, D.C. Admission Act (shares 3 subjects)
  • HJRES 5 — Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to limit the number of terms an individual may serve as a Member of Congress. (shares 3 subjects)
  • HRES 1424 — Expressing the profound sorrow of the House of Representatives on the death of the Honorable Lindsey Graham. (shares 2 subjects)
  • SRES 755 — A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former Senator for the State of Michigan. (shares 2 subjects)

Similar bills (6)

Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.

  • SJRES 1 — A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to limiting the number of terms that a Member of Congress may serve. · Introduced Jan 7, 2025 · Cong. 119 85%
  • SJRES 43 — A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to contributions and expenditures intended to affect elections. · Introduced Mar 27, 2025 · Cong. 119 82%
  • HJRES 21 — Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the election of Senators. · Introduced Mar 11, 2009 · Cong. 111 80%
  • SJRES 48 — A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to limit the number of terms an individual may serve as a Member of Congress. · Introduced Apr 10, 2025 · Cong. 119 75%
  • SJRES 16 — A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to require that the Supreme Court of the United States be composed of nine justices. · Introduced Feb 6, 2025 · Cong. 119 72%
  • SJRES 38 — A joint resolution establishing the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. · Introduced Mar 25, 2025 · Cong. 119 70%

Text versions (1)
  • Introduced in Senate · Jan 29, 2009

Only one text version is on file, so there’s no earlier version to compare against yet.

Full text

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

January 29, 2009

Mr. Feingold (for himself, Mr. Begich, and Mr. McCain) introduced the following joint resolution; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

JOINT RESOLUTION

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the election of Senators.

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled (two-thirds of each House concurring therein), That the following article is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years after the date of its submission by the Congress:

“Article —

“Section 1. No person shall be a Senator from a State unless such person has been elected by the people thereof. When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. “Section 2. This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or term of any Senator chosen before it becomes valid as a part of the Constitution.”. <all>

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