Chapter XXVI: Section I

I. The executive power shall be vested in a president of the United
States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of four
years, and, together with the vice-president, chosen for the same
term, be elected as follows:

II. Each state shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature
thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole number of
senators and representatives to which the state may be entitled in the
congress; but no senator or representative, or person holding an
office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed
an elector.

III. The electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by
ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an
inhabitant of the same state with themselves. And they shall make a
list of all the persons voted for, and of the number of votes for
each; which list they shall sign and certify, and transmit, sealed, to
the seat of government of the United States, directed to the president
of the senate. The president of the senate shall, in the presence of
the senate and house of representatives, open all the certificates,
and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the greatest
number of votes shall be the president, if such number be a majority
of the whole number of electors appointed; and if there be more than
one who have such majority, and have an equal number of votes, then
the house of representatives shall immediately choose, by ballot, one
of them for president: and if no person have a majority, then from the
five highest on the list, the said house shall, in like manner, choose
the president. But in choosing the president, the votes shall be taken
by states, the representation from each state having one vote; a
quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from
two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be
necessary to a choice. In every case, after the choice of the
president, the person having the greatest number of votes of the
electors shall be the vice-president. But if there should remain two
or more who have equal votes, the senate shall choose from them, by
ballot, the vice-president.

IV. The congress may determine the time for choosing the electors, and
the day on which they shall give their votes: which day shall be the
same throughout the United States.

V. No person, except a natural born citizen or a citizen of the United
States at the time of the adoption of this constitution, shall be
eligible to the office of president, neither shall any person be
eligible to that office, who shall not have attained to the age of
thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident within the
United States.

VI. In case of the removal of the president from office, or of his
death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of
the said office, the same shall devolve on the vice-president, and the
congress may, by law, provide for the case of removal, death,
resignation, or inability, both of the president and vice-president,
declaring what officer shall then act as president, and such officer
shall act accordingly, until the disability be removed, or a president
shall be elected.

VII. The president shall, at stated times, receive for his services a
compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during
the period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not
receive, within that period, any other emolument from the United
States, or any of them.

VIII. Before he enters on the execution of his office, he shall take
the following oath, or affirmation:

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the
office of president of the United States, and will, to the best of my
ability, preserve, protect, and defend the constitution of the United
States.”