Table of Contents
How are states represented in each house of Congress?
Each state sends two Senators to represent their state in the U.S. Senate. However, in the House of Representatives, a state’s representation is based on its population. For example, smaller states like Vermont and Delaware have one representative while large states like California have 53 representatives.
How would the states be represented fairly in the legislative branch under this new system of government?
Representation in the lower house would be chosen by the people. The number of each state’s representatives would be based on the state’s total white population plus three fifths of its slave population. Each state would have two members in the Senate, chosen by the state legislature.
How are states represented in the Constitutional Convention?
Under the bicameral system, each party would be represented in a balance of power. Each state would be equally represented in the Senate, with two delegates, while representation in the House of Representatives would be based upon population.
Where did the signing of the Constitution take place?
The signing of the U.S. Constitution in the State House in Philadelphia. The Articles of Confederation under which the United States operated from 1781 to 1787 provided that each state would be represented by one vote in Congress.
What was the issue of representation in the Articles of Confederation?
One group of delegates believed that they were not authorized to change the “federal” representational scheme under the Articles of Confederation, according to which the states were equally represented in a unicameral Congress by delegates appointed by the state legislatures.
What was the Constitution at the time of the convention?
At the time of the convention, the Articles of Confederation, under which states wielded primary power, was the nation’s governing document. Article 2 specifically recognized the sovereignty of the states, and the federal government’s powers were mostly limited to foreign affairs and did not include control of interstate commerce.