Constitutional Convention Members Issues of Debates Compromises

Members 55 delegates White Males Statesmen, lawyers, planters. bankers, businessmen Most under age 50

Absent John Adams- ambassador to England Thomas Jefferson- ambassador to France Patrick Henry- “smelled a rat” Sam Adams- not chosen by state to be part of the delegation

Famous Members Alexander Hamilton- leader of strong government George Washington- chairman of the convention

James Madison- Called the Father of the Constitution He took careful notes on all the debates in the Convention. Using the notes he took, he wrote most of the U.S. Constitution.

Benjamin Franklin- He was the oldest member at 81 years old. He was considered the “elder statesman”. As others argued over the issues Franklin listened. He did not speak much, but when he did, everyone listened to him. Franklin proved to be the voice of peace and reason.

Issues Debated at the Constitutional Convention

Representation of the States The Articles of Confederation had only the congress with one house. Each state had one vote. Larger states wanted the number of representatives to be based on their population. Smaller states wanted an equal number of representatives in Congress.

Number of Congressmen determined by state population Virginia Plan Proposed by big states Lawmaking body: Bicameral (2 Houses) Number of Congressmen determined by state population Elected by the people Elected by the 1st house Based on Population

Supported by smaller states New Jersey Plan Supported by smaller states Lawmaking body: Unicameral (1 House) Based on Equality Each state would have the same number of Representatives or votes

The Great Compromise This was a combination of both plans… Lawmaking body: Bicameral Congress (2 Houses) Senate House of Representatives Each state gets 2 representatives # of reps. would depend on populations

Slavery Slavery became an issue with population. In the south, slavery made up 1/3 of the population The south wanted slaves to count in their population so they would have more votes. Slaves however could not vote.

Three-Fifths Compromise The Convention decided to count 3/5 of the total number of slaves as population. This meant that every 5 African-Americans equaled 3 white people in population. Slaves still could not vote

Federal vs. state government Members of the Convention debated over how the government should be set up and where the powers should lie. Popular Sovereignty- the people rule. The power of the government is based on the consent of the governed. Limited Government- the idea that government is not all powerful, but can only do what the people allow it to.

Principles of the Constitution Checks and Balances- A political system in which branches of government have some authority over the actions of the other branches Separation of powers- the division of the government into three separate branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.

Criticism of Constitution Does not protect the rights of the individual Does not protect states rights Gives a central authority too much power