What is a veto, and how is it overridden?
A veto is the power of a president or governor to reject a bill passed by the legislature, preventing it from becoming law unless the legislature overrides that rejection, typically requiring a supermajority vote, commonly two-thirds, in each legislative chamber.
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Core tenets
- Executive rejection of legislation
- A veto is the formal act of the executive refusing to sign a bill the legislature has passed, returning it unsigned along with objections.
- Legislative override requires a supermajority
- Overriding a veto and enacting the bill into law without executive approval generally requires a higher vote threshold, commonly two-thirds of each chamber at the federal level, than the simple majority needed for initial passage.
- Pocket veto as an alternative form
- If the president does not sign a bill and Congress adjourns before the ten-day period for action expires, the bill dies without a formal veto message, a pocket veto, which cannot be directly overridden.
How it works in practice
The veto and override process is a central mechanism through which the executive and legislative branches check one another under a system of separated powers.
- Veto message
- The president returns a vetoed bill to the originating chamber along with a written statement of objections.
- Override vote
- Each chamber holds a separate vote on whether to override the veto, requiring the supermajority threshold in both chambers for the bill to become law without presidential signature.
What it is often confused with
A veto is sometimes confused with a pocket veto specifically; a regular veto can be overridden by Congress, while a pocket veto, occurring when Congress adjourns before a bill can be signed, cannot be overridden since there is no bill returned to act upon.
Criticisms and debates
Debate over the veto centers on whether it appropriately checks legislative overreach or gives the executive excessive leverage over the legislative process.
Executive-check defense
Argues that the veto gives the executive a meaningful check against legislation it considers unconstitutional, poorly drafted, or contrary to the public interest, consistent with a system of separated powers.
Response: Critics respond that the difficulty of assembling a two-thirds override majority means the veto can effectively give a single executive outsized influence over legislation with broad, if not overwhelming, legislative support.
Override-threshold critique
Contends that the high supermajority threshold to override makes vetoes rarely overturned in practice, giving the veto power weight that a simple check might not otherwise carry.
Response: Defenders of the current threshold argue this reflects the deliberate design of the veto as a strong check, not merely an advisory objection the legislature could easily set aside.
Historical examples
- War Powers Resolution veto override, 1973
- Congress overrode President Nixon's veto to enact the War Powers Resolution, a widely cited historical example of a successful override.
Sources
- 1.Article I, Section 7, United States Constitution.
- 2.Congressional Research Service. Regular Vetoes and Pocket Vetoes: An Overview.
- 3.Encyclopaedia Britannica. Veto.