PW_TR_SGEE_p26-36 1/22/02 10:14 AM Page 27 SECTION 2 THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION TEXT SUMMARY In 1787 delegates from almost all the states met in Philadelphia at the Constitutional Convention to revise the national government. Some wanted to amend, or revise, the Articles of Confederation and others wanted a whole new plan. Two plans arose, the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan, which differed over the issue of representation. It was settled by the Great Compromise that there would be a bicameral legislature. The House of Representatives would have representatives based on state population. The Senate would have two senators from each state. The delegates also settled on the Three-fifths Compromise, which allowed three fifths of a state’s slave population to be counted toward representation. The Constitution created a federal system of government in which states and the national government share powers. The Constitution called for a separation of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Each branch has its own area of authority, but no branch has complete control. A system of checks and balances also gives one branch of government the authority to stop, or check, the other branches. T H E BIG I D E A The Constitution also created During the summer the office of the President with of 1787, delegates to the power to veto, or prohibit, the Constitutional an act of Congress from becomConvention wrote ing law. The President would the United States be elected by the Electoral Constitution. College. The Constitution also provided for a Supreme Court. GRAPHIC SUMMARY: The Three Branches of Government The system of checks and balances keeps any one branch from becoming too powerful. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. How did the Great Compromise resolve the issue of representation? © Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Prentice-Hall. 2. Diagram Skills How can the President limit the power of Congress? Guide to the Essentials CHAPTER 5 27
© Copyright 2026 Paperzz