Direct Democracy and Article II: Additional Thoughts on Initiatives and Presidential Elections

Authors

Vikram David Amar

Abstract

This Article focuses on the first of the two questions in Professor Richard Hasen's aricle on whether "initiated changes to rules for choosing Presidential electors violate Article II." The article looks closely at places other than Article II where the Constitution uses the phrase "legislature of the States" and carefully examines Supreme Court cases on the topic. Given that initiative proponents are not necessarily foreclosed by the text of the Constitution, or Supreme Court case law, and given that initiative backers have some nineteenth and twentieth century history on their side, courts should be hesitant to invalidate all initiated changes to presidential selection procedures.

Recommended Citation

Vikram David Amar, Direct Democracy and Article II: Additional Thoughts on Initiatives and Presidential Elections, 35 Hastings Const. L.Q. 631 (2008).
Available at: https://repository.uclawsf.edu/hastings_constitutional_law_quaterly/vol35/iss4/2