Federalist vs. AntiFederalist
The Never Ending
Debate
The Ratification Process
• The drafting of the new United States Constitution was
only the beginning of the process to make it the law of
the land. In order for this to happen, at least nine of the
thirteen states would have to ratify the Constitution.
The debate over ratification would split the political
leaders of the time. People who supported ratification
of the Constitution were Federalists, and those who
opposed the new Constitution were Anti-Federalists.
The debate over ratification of the Constitution would
take place on the pages of the many newspapers and
pamphlets that circulated in the country.
The Federalists
Alexander
Hamilton
John Jay
Federalists supported ratification of
the Constitution. James Madison, who
had been a key figure in drafting of
the Constitution, along with
Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and
others answered criticisms of the new
Constitution. These men wanted to
push the ratification of the
Constitution and to influence future
interpretations of the Constitution.
James
Madison
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The Anti-Federalists
Patrick
Henry
George
Mason
Thomas
Paine
Anti-Federalists opposed ratification of
the Constitution. They argued that
although the Articles of Confederation
needed to be improved, the proposed
Constitution granted too much power to
the national government. Some of the
more famous Anti-Federalists included
Patrick Henry, George Mason, George
Clinton, and Thomas Paine. Other AntiFederalists preferred to remain
anonymous and used pseudonyms such
as Centinel, Brutus, and Republicus.
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DIFFERENT POINTS OF VIEW
• Federalists argued for
– Wanted a strong
national government
– Three branches of
government filled with
men of “reputation”
– Wanted a president to
lead executive branch
– No Bill of Rights
• Antifederalists argued
– States should have
power
– Wanted legislative
branch to be strongest
branch of government
– Feared a strong
president in office
– A Bill of Rights would
protect the rights of
Americans
The Federalists
The Federalist, was a series of eighty-five
articles written and published between
September 1787 and August 1788. The
articles presented arguments in favor of the
new Constitution. Although all of the
articles are signed Publius, it was well
known the main authors were Alexander
Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay.
Hamilton wrote the first essay in response
to a series of Anti-Federalist articles
criticizing the Constitution. Most of these
essays were published in The New York
Packet and The Independent Journal.
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The Anti-Federalists
George Clinton
“Cato”
Richard Henry Lee
“Federal Farmer”
Robert Yates
“Brutus” and
“Sydney”
Mercy Otis Warren
“Columbian Patriot”
The Anti-Federalist papers were a
series of editorials critical of the
Constitution. The primary
argument of the Anti-Federalists
was that the new government was
too powerful and threatened the
rights of the states and their
citizens. While most of the AntiFederalist papers were written
anonymously, historians are
confident they have identified
several of these writers.
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An Unfair Advantage?
• The Federalists publish their
essays in New York
newspapers and pamphlets
in 1787-1789
• Newspapers support the
Federalist side and publish
more Federalist writings than
Anti-Federalist writings!
Compromise:
Ratification and a Bill of Rights
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Overall, the Federalists were more organized in their efforts and ultimately succeeded –
but not before compromising with the Anti-Federalists on the issue of a Bill of Rights.
Five states ratified the Constitution quickly and relatively easily: Delaware (30-0),
Pennsylvania (46-23), New Jersey (38-0), Georgia (26-0), and Connecticut (128-40).
Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia remained and would be crucial in terms of
population stature for the new government to succeed.
Debates in Massachusetts were very heated, with impassioned speeches from those on
both sides of the issue. Massachusetts was finally won, 187-168, but only after
assurances to opponents that the Constitution could have a bill of rights added to it.
Subsequently, Maryland (63-11) and South Carolina (149-73) agreed and New
Hampshire (57-47) cast the deciding vote to reach the required nine states.
The votes in Virginia (89-79) and New York (30-27) were hard-won, and close.
Confidence was now high that the new government would succeed.
Making good on their promise, a number of amendments were passed by Congress,
allying the fears of the holdout states.
North Carolina (194-77) and finally Rhode Island (34-32) relented and ratified well over
a year after the Constitution took effect.
Winning over the States
Factions
The debate resulting from
ratification of the Constitution
split Americans between those
who favored a strong central
government and those who
wanted power to reside with the
states. Although President
George Washington warned of
political factions in his farewell address, the divisions that had
begun in 1787 led to the formation of the first political parties in
the United States: The Federalist Party and the DemocraticRepublican Party.
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The Result
Both sides in the debate between the
Federalists and the Anti-Federalists
won. The Federalists won when the
Constitution finally was ratified and
became the law of the land. The
Constitution established the federal
government as the central authority.
The Ant-Federalists won because the
James Madison presents the Bill
Bill of Rights would guarantee the
of Rights to Congress. While
rights of citizens.
twelve amendments were
originally proposed, only ten were
sent to the states for ratification.
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