There are 27 amendments in the United States Constitution that have served as the bedrock for the American Republic for 250 years.

Rep. Scott Perry (R-10) wants to repeal one of them.

The Capitol Region Republican has signed on as a co-sponsor to Rep. Keith Self’s (R-Texas) resolution (H.J.Res.198) to repeal the 17th Amendment and restore the Founders’ original vision for the United States Senate by returning the selection of U.S. Senators to state legislatures.

The 17th Amendment, ratified in 1913, allows voters to cast direct votes for U.S. senators. Prior to its passage, senators were chosen by state legislatures.

“The current system has given us six-year politicians more focused on national ambitions and the institution of the U.S. Senate than on the states they serve,” said Self. “Our Founding Fathers designed the Senate to protect state sovereignty and act as a check on federal overreach. If senators are supposed to represent their states, then the states should choose them. Repealing the 17th Amendment will restore that constitutional balance and make the Senate more accountable to the people of Texas and every other state in the union.”

According to the National Archives, “The Constitution, as it was adopted in 1788, made the Senate an assembly where the states would have equal representation. Each state legislature would elect two senators to six-year terms. Late in the 19th century, some state legislatures deadlocked over the election of a senator when different parties controlled different houses — Senate vacancies could last months or years. In other cases, special interests or political machines gained control over the state legislature. Progressive reformers dismissed individuals elected by such legislatures as puppets and the Senate as a “millionaires’ club” serving powerful private interests.”

Self’s resolution would return the selection of senators back to the founders’ original intention – representing the states as sovereign entities – and giving the authority back to state legislatures that, in Self’s words, “remain directly accountable to local voters.”

Perry did not offer a comment on his action to sign on as a co-sponsor.

In addition to Perry, other co-sponsors include Reps. Eric Burlison (Mo.), Andrew Clyde (Ga.), Paul Gosar (Ariz.), Andy Harris (Md.), Clay Higgins (La.), Sheri Biggs (S.C.), Michael Cloud (Texas), and Victoria Spartz (Ind.). All but Spartz are members of the House Freedom Caucus.

“The 17th Amendment is arguably the most injurious amendment in history. Big money has twisted our Senate races into circus acts. The Founders knew what they were doing, and We the People should restore the original Constitutional process for election of US Senators,” said Higgins.

This is the second time in the 119th Congress that a legislator has proposed the elimination of a constitutional amendment. In January 2025, Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) proposed repealing the 16th Amendment that specifies that Congress may collect federal income taxes. That bill was introduced and referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary where it sits today.