US Constitutional Amendments

1st Amendment

Guarantees freedoms concerning religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.

2nd Amendment

Protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms.

3rd Amendment

Prohibits the quartering of soldiers in private homes without the owner's consent during peacetime.

4th Amendment

Protects against unreasonable searches and seizures and requires warrants supported by probable cause.

5th Amendment

Guarantees rights regarding due process, protection against self-incrimination and double jeopardy, and fair compensation under eminent domain.

6th Amendment

Guarantees the right to a speedy and public trial, an impartial jury, legal counsel, and witness confrontation in criminal prosecutions.

7th Amendment

Guarantees the right to a jury trial in common law civil cases where the value in controversy exceeds twenty dollars.

8th Amendment

Prohibits excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishments.

9th Amendment

States that the listing of specific rights in the Constitution does not deny or disparage other rights retained by the people.

10th Amendment

Reserves powers not delegated to the federal government by the Constitution to the states or to the people.

11th Amendment

Restricts federal courts from hearing lawsuits brought against a state by citizens of another state or foreign country.

12th Amendment

Revises presidential election procedures by requiring separate Electoral College ballots for president and vice president.

13th Amendment

Abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.

14th Amendment

Grants citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the US and guarantees equal protection and due process under the law.

15th Amendment

Prohibits denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

16th Amendment

Grants Congress the authority to levy and collect a federal income tax without apportioning it among the states.

17th Amendment

Establishes the direct election of US Senators by popular vote rather than appointment by state legislatures.

18th Amendment

Prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of intoxicating liquors within the United States.

19th Amendment

Guarantees women the right to vote in all federal and state elections.

20th Amendment

Sets the start dates for presidential terms (January 20) and congressional sessions (January 3).

21st Amendment

Repeals the 18th Amendment, ending national Prohibition.

22nd Amendment

Limits an elected president to serving a maximum of two terms.

23rd Amendment

Grants electors in the Electoral College to the District of Columbia.

24th Amendment

Prohibits poll taxes as a requirement for voting in federal elections.

25th Amendment

Establishes procedures for presidential succession, vice-presidential vacancies, and handling presidential disability.

26th Amendment

Lowers the voting age to 18 years old for all federal, state, and local elections.

27th Amendment

Prevents any law varying congressional compensation from taking effect until after the next election of representatives.