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As specified by Article V, the process of amending the Constitution consists of two stages: proposal and ratification. As shown in Figure 2.7, proposals can be made in either of two ways:

 by a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress or

 by a request to Congress from two-thirds of the state legislatures to call a convention to propose amendments.

To date, all 33 amendments were proposed by Congress. The alternative route—a convention convened by a vote of the state legislatures—poses several problems. The Constitution does not specify how delegates to the convention should be chosen, how many delegates there should be, or what rules such delegates should follow. In addition, such a convention could presumably introduce as many amendments as it wanted. The last time we had a convention, in 1787, we ended up with an entirely new constitution. Fears that another convention could lead to similarly radical change, together with uncertainty about the mechanics of such a convention, make amendment proposals by Congress a safer and easier option.

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Figure 2.7 The Constitutional Amendment Process

Whether proposed by Congress or a convention, amendments must then be ratified by the states. Like proposals, ratification can come about in either of two ways (with Congress specifying the method for each amendment proposed):

 by a vote of three-fourths of the state legislatures or

 by a vote of three-fourths of specially convened state ratifying conventions.

As of 2019, only one of the 27 amendments ratified—the Twenty-First Amendment, repealing prohibition—was ratified by state conventions. In that case, Congress predicted that passage by state conventions was more likely than passage by conservative state legislatures.

Only one constitutional amendment has been passed to repeal another: the Twenty-First Amendment, which ended Prohibition. It was also the only amendment to be ratified by state conventions rather than state legislatures.

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