<P> The Seventeenth Amendment ( Amendment XVII ) to the United States Constitution established the popular election of United States Senators by the people of the states . The amendment supersedes Article I , § 3 , Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution , under which senators were elected by state legislatures . It also alters the procedure for filling vacancies in the Senate , allowing for state legislatures to permit their governors to make temporary appointments until a special election can be held . </P>
<P> The Seventeenth Amendment ( Amendment XVII ) to the United States Constitution established the popular election of United States Senators by the people of the states . The amendment supersedes Article I , § 3 , Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution , under which senators were elected by state legislatures . It also alters the procedure for filling vacancies in the Senate , allowing for state legislatures to permit their governors to make temporary appointments until a special election can be held . </P>
under the constitution prior to the seventeenth amendment united states senators were
under the constitution prior to the seventeenth amendment united states senators were
elected by state legislatures
elected by state legislatures