Topic 1.5 Ratification of the U.S. Constitution (CON-1)
Matters unresolved in the Constitution today
- Although these compromises secured ratification of the Constitution, they also left some matters unresolved. - For example, the Great Compromise satisfied both small and large states, but there are questions today about whether the Senate's representation should be based on population, as in the House of Representatives. Differences in population growth have brought into question whether two senators per state is fair to states with large populations. - The Electoral College system has also led to controversy. In both the election of 2000 and the election of 2016, one candidate won the popular vote, but the other candidate won the Electoral College and therefore the presidency. Critics charge that in this system, a small group of representatives decides the presidency, rather than the entire population of the United States, and that states with smaller populations have a disproportionate say in who becomes president.
Constitutional debates that exist today
- Even today, some of the issues at the heart of the debates at the Constitutional Convention still exist. Some of these questions include: How strong should the federal government be? What powers do the states have? 3) Which individual rights are protected? These debates surface in issues like the federal government's surveillance of US citizens following the attacks on September 11th and the role of the federal government in public school education.
Compromises at the Constitutional Convention
- When the Articles of Confederation proved to be an ineffective form of government for the United States, delegates from 12 of the 13 states met in Philadelphia. To get the Constitution ratified by all 13 states, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention had to reach several compromises. - The three major compromises were the Great Compromise, the Three-Fifths Compromise, and the Electoral College. The Great Compromise settled matters of representation in the federal government. The Three-Fifths Compromise settled matters of representation when it came to the enslaved population of southern states and the importation of enslaved Africans. The Electoral College settled how the president would be elected.
Electoral College
A body of representatives from every state in the United States who formally cast votes to elect the president and vice president.
Amendment
A change in, or addition to, a constitution or law
Great Compromise
Also known as the Connecticut Compromise, a major compromise at the Constitutional Convention that created a two-house legislature, with the Senate having equal representation for all states and the House of Representatives having representation proportional to state populations.
Three-Fifths Compromise
An agreement added to the Constitution that would count each enslaved person as three-fifths of a white person for purposes of representation in the House of Representatives.
US Constitution (1787)
The fundamental laws and principles that govern the United States. The document was the result of several compromises between Federalists and Anti-Federalists surrounding the ratification of the Constitution.
Article V
The section of the Constitution that details how to amend the Constitution, either through a congressional proposal or a convention of the states, with final ratification from three-fourths of the states.
