Elected v. Appointed: Senators & the Seventeenth Amendment [POLICYbrief]

Prior to the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, U.S. senators were appointed by their state legislators and not directly elected by the people. Professors Wendy Schiller from Brown University and Todd Zywicki from George Mason University discuss the genesis of the amendment and how it fundamentally changed American politics.

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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speaker.

Follow Todd Zywicki on Twitter: @ToddZywicki
https://twitter.com/toddzywicki?lang=en

Learn more about Todd Zywicki:
https://www.law.gmu.edu/faculty/directory/fulltime/zywicki_todd

Follow Wendy Schiller on Twitter: @Profwschiller
https://twitter.com/profwschiller

Learn more about Wendy Schiller:
https://watson.brown.edu/people/faculty-fellows/schiller

Related Links:

Electing the Senate: Indirect Democracy before the Seventeenth Amendment by Wendy Schiller & Steward III, Charles
https://www.amazon.com/Electing-Senate-Seventeenth-International-Perspectives/dp/0691163170/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=17th+amendment+book&qid=1568039572&s=gateway&sr=8-4

Landmark Legislation: The Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution
https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/SeventeenthAmendment.htm

Differing Views:

Want to Fix the Senate? Repeal the 17th Amendment
https://www.realclearpolicy.com/articles/2018/10/19/want_to_fix_the_senate_repeal_the_17th_amendment_110870.html

Is it time to repeal the 17th Amendment?
https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/404337-is-it-time-to-repeal-the-17th-amendment

Some Conservatives Want to Repeal the 17th Amendment. Here’s Why They’re Misguided.
https://www.heritage.org/the-constitution/commentary/some-conservatives-want-repeal-the-17th-amendment-heres-why-theyre

Why repealing the 17th Amendment wouldn't fix the Senate
https://www.vox.com/mischiefs-of-faction/2017/8/1/16069872/repealing-17th-amendment-bad-idea