North Carolina's Constitution

1776 Constitution By 1776 royal governor was forced from power Held Constitutional Convention to create their constitution Three Branch Structure: Governor, Courts, Legislature

Legislature Called General Assembly 2 chamber legislature made up of House of Representatives and Senate Senate: 50 members 2 year terms House of Representatives: 120 members 2 year terms

Executive Governor and Lieutenant Governor Elected for 4 year terms

Judicial Supreme court with 7 justices elected to 8 year terms Court of Appeals with 15 judges elected to 8 year terms Superior courts, district courts, and administrative office Elected or appointed by judges

Limiting Governor's power Old government gave governor unlimited power 1776 Constitution gave governor very limited power Chosen directly by legislature Did not have veto power Serve 1 year terms Ensured that they would never have to submit to tyrant in governor's office again

Rights and Responsibilities Declaration of Rights: document claiming for the people such rights as freedom of the press and freedom of worship Also established key responsibilities for the state One section created publicly supported system of education In 1789 University of North Carolina became first public university in the US Provided creation of local goverments (cities, towns, counties)

Amendment Process Has changed over the years In most cases it has been by vote of people Two different methods today Amendment is proposed (3/5) submitted to voters (majority) Constitutional Convention proposed (2/3), Constitutional Convention called, voters ratify or reject

By Constitutional Convention By Legislature By 2/3 vote General Assembly can call for a Constitutional Convention Must specify precise purpose Call is submitted to voters If voters vote to hold convention, delegates are elected Any amendments proposed by convention are submitted to voters for approval or rejection in referendum By 3/5 vote General Assembly can submit a proposed amendment directly to voters Voters vote to approve or deny amendment

1868 Constitution After Civil War Congress required all states that left the union to draft new constitution Remained mostly the same Changes included: No longer needed to own property to vote Governor's term grew to 4 years Powers of governor were increased

1971 Constitution Governor Dan Moore established a commission to make changes Removed obsolete items and clarified unclear language Required public school year lengthened from 6 to 9 months Affected governments ability to tax and raise money

Go to the North Carolina State Constitution page on the North Carolina General Assembly's Web site. Click on link to view the Declaration of Rights. How many Sections does the Declaration of Rights have? Select three of the Sections that include rights that are important to you. Rewrite these three Sections in your own words and give an example of how it might affect you.