Emma Fordham

10/22/14
Senators and House of Representatives
Originally, the Founding Fathers wanted each state to have Senators based on its
population, but that would have, of course, given more populated states more power and less
populated states did not support that. A conclusion was eventually reached: all states would have
an equal amount of representation in the Senate. One representative per state would not suffice
what if he became sick or injured and could not attend meetings? Two delegates per state would
not only give each state equal representation, but would ensure that at least one could attend
every meeting. The length of a Senators term (six years) was a compromise between those who
wanted a strong Senate and those who feared the development of a tyrannical aristocracy. At
first, the Founders wanted Senators to serve seven year terms, but James Madison managed to
convince the group that six year terms would suffice; after all, Marylands senate served five
year terms and no tyrants had arisen. Six years was a decent compromise between people who
wanted Senators to serve short terms and people who wanted Senators to serve very long terms.
The qualifications to be a Senator are stricter than the qualifications to be a member of
the House of Representatives because, according to James Madison, the senatorial trust,
called for a greater extent of information and stability of character, than would be needed in
the more democratic House of Representatives. The citizenship requirement for Senators (nine
years a resident of the United States) was viewed as a compromise between a total exclusion of
immigrants and a complete inclusion of them. It only made sense to the Founders that a Senator
had to live in the state he represented; there was no controversy over that. However, they did
change the term resident to the term inhabitant in the Constitution so as not to exclude those
who left their state for business trips.
















Bibliography
The Senate and the United States Constitution. The United States Senate. Accessed on October
22, 2014. https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/com mon/briefing/
Constitution_Senate.htm.