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House rejects resolution urging repeal of the 17th Amendment
Summary
Representative Millett's HJ25 proposed urging Congress to repeal the 17th Amendment and return selection of U.S. senators to state legislatures; the resolution failed after extended debate (39–61).
House Joint Resolution 25, introduced by Representative Millett on April 1, urged the U.S. Congress to propose an amendment to repeal the Seventeenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and to provide a new selection framework for U.S. senators by state legislatures. Millett framed the resolution as a restoration of federalism and legislative oversight, arguing the original framers intended state legislatures to select senators.
Opponents on the floor criticized the proposal as a removal of voters' power and warned of greater partisanship and reduced accountability. Representative Cordum and Representative Zephyr both opposed the measure on the grounds that it would shift selection away from the electorate and could lower the threshold for removing federal senators to a simple state-legislative majority. Representative Deming and others spoke in support, contending it would restore state leverage and reduce federal concentration of power.
Final action: On second reading the resolution failed, with a recorded vote of 39 in favor and 61 opposed.
Context: A joint resolution of this kind is a formal statement to Congress; it does not change federal law without congressional action and eventual ratification by the states. The House debate emphasized constitutional history and differing views of how federalism should function today.
