H.J.Res. 218House119th Congress (2025-2027)In Committee

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to abolish the electoral college and to provide for the direct election of the President and Vice President of the United States.

AI-Generated Summary

Updated October 6, 2026 at 5:44 AM UTC

H.J.Res. 218 proposes a constitutional amendment that would eliminate the Electoral College and replace it with a direct popular election for President and Vice President. Under the amendment, voters would cast a single vote for a joint ticket of two candidates, and the ticket receiving the most votes nationwide would win. The change would affect all U.S. voters and the process for selecting the nation’s chief executives.

Key Provisions

President and Vice President would be elected directly by the people of each state and the District of Columbia.
Each voter would cast one vote for a pair of candidates who have agreed to run together for President and Vice President.
The ticket with the highest total number of votes nationwide would be declared the winners.
Congress could pass laws to handle situations such as a candidate’s death, disqualification, or a tie before the election is decided.
The amendment would become effective one year after January 1 following its ratification by three‑quarters of the states.

Legislative Activity

Stay on top of the latest movement without scrolling through every action

1 earlier action

HouseIntro Referral Latest Action

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Judiciary Committee

October 1, 2026

View full timeline

HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

October 1, 2026

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Judiciary Committee

October 1, 2026

Bill Text

Latest available legislative text

Reading Mode

Raw Text PDF XML

Introduced in HouseIssued October 1, 2026

119th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. J. RES. 218

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

October 1, 2026

Mr. Cohen submitted the following joint resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

JOINT RESOLUTION

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to abolish the electoral college and to provide for the direct election of the President and Vice President of the United States.

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:

—

The President and Vice President shall be elected by the people of the several States and the district constituting the seat of government of the United States.

Each voter shall cast a single vote for two persons who have consented to the joining of their names as candidates for President and Vice President.

The pair of candidates having the greatest number of votes for President and Vice President shall be elected.

The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death or any other disqualification of any candidate for President or Vice President before the day on which the President-elect or Vice President-elect has been chosen, and for the case of a tie in any election.

This article shall take effect one year after the first day of January following ratification.