The political innovations developed at the Constitutional Convention centered on the concept of compromise. There were many issues that needed to be resolved in order to develop the new plan of government. One of those issues dealt with the structure of Congress. Large states wanted to have unequal representation in Congress. They wanted representation to be based on the population of a state. Small states wanted to have equal representation in Congress. They feared their...
The political innovations developed at the Constitutional Convention centered on the concept of compromise. There were many issues that needed to be resolved in order to develop the new plan of government. One of those issues dealt with the structure of Congress. Large states wanted to have unequal representation in Congress. They wanted representation to be based on the population of a state. Small states wanted to have equal representation in Congress. They feared their concerns would not be heard if representation in Congress was unequal. An agreement was made to have two houses of Congress. Representation would be unequal in the House of Representatives. It would be equal in the Senate.
Another compromise dealt with the issue regarding if slaves should be used in counting the state’s population. If slaves were counted, this would increase the population of a state, giving it more representatives in Congress. This would favor the South. A compromise was reached, called the Three-Fifths Compromise, in which every five slaves would count as three people.
Finally, there were differences of opinion regarding trade. An agreement was reached that allowed Congress to control trade. However, only imports could be taxed.
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