Francis Huang

Professor Hamman
Political Science 1
5 November 2015
Summary of Plans from the Constitutional Convention

The Virginia Plan

The Virginia Plan was a proposal that was set to improve the Articles of Confederation because
of the effect it had after gaining independence from Britain. The Articles of Confederation was
still under construction since it was just a document of what America wanted and was soon later
incorporated into the Constitution of the United States. The Virginia plan was thought by
Edmund Randolph also why this plan was known as the Randolph Plan or the Large-State Plan.
James Madison took the initiative to draft it because of the importance it had in the government.
The plan suggested that the government be split into three branches: judicial, legislative, and
executive branches so that way power can be equally split amongst them. Checks and balances
were also ensured to keep the distribution of power within the branches stable. Not only did the
plan was created to revise The Articles of Confederation to create a strong central government
but also to have a two-house legislature with representation of states based on population and
wealth. Large states (Massachusetts, Virginia, New York) would be benefited by this plan since
more votes were landed by them. The ideas from the Virginia Plan were integrated into the
government as it was fully acknowledged and seemed to create a sense of equality when it came
to shape the Constitution. The congress had the ability to veto any state laws that were against
the Constitution, tax commerce, and to legislate. The executive had the ability to carry out laws.
This plan seems fairly well regarding the national government but does not look too well towards
the state government because of how the smaller states felt against it. The Virginia Plan added a
lot of ideas from the larger states into the new government which later was retaliated by the New

Francis Huang

Jersey Plan created by the smaller states. This plan certainly caused a feud with the smaller states
because they feared that they wouldnt have a voice because the larger states will be more
acknowledged. That is when the development of the New Jersey Plan came to be.

The New Jersey Plan

The New Jersey Plan was a counterproposal to the Virginia Plan because of what the Virginia
Plan proposed, that is when larger states had a voice when smaller states dont when it comes to
voting. The smaller states felt weak and decided to adapt their own plan. The New Jersey Plan
was presented by William Paterson to delegates of the Constitutional Convention in hopes of
strengthening a process that does not show unbiased selections of representatives to a centralized
legislative body. Smaller states felt that the size of a state shouldnt be a conclusive factor of
funding or legislation. The smaller states were undeniably less benefitted when it came to having
their voice be heard because of less representation within the population but nevertheless, they
came up with the New Jersey Plan to stand up for themselves. Because states with larger
populations had to face much more responsibility, The Articles of Confederation stated that no
matter what size the states are, each state was to be considered a sovereign legislative entity
because that way they wouldnt feel out of place considering the size issue. The New Jersey Plan
allowed each state to have one vote in a unicameral congress which means they could vote in a
single legislative chamber. Congress had the ability to regulate trade, raise taxes, and authorize
passing acts. The main reasoning behind this act was for naturalization to be present because it
would make it fair for each state rather than letting larger states have a more dominant voice in
the government. William Paterson had hoped that this plan would address both small and large
states alike in that small states wouldnt be penalized because of their inferior population while

Francis Huang

large states shouldnt subject to the formation of potential alliances. Even though there were still
oppositions between these two plans, a compromise would soon be made to neutralize both
standpoints from both of the plans.

Connecticut/The Great Compromise

The Connecticut Compromise, also known as The Great Compromise was an agreement that
both the small states and the large states reached after a long feud they had when it came to their
beliefs in the government and the size of their population giving larger states more benefits than
the smaller states. The Great Compromise was proposed by Roger Sherman and Oliver
Ellsworth. They established a two-house legislature; one house with equal representation for all
states and the other house with proportional representation based solely on population. The larger
states believed that representation was based on the proportional contribution while the smaller
states believed that the only fair plan was have one of equal representation for all states. The
Great Compromise was beneficial for all the states because it ensured equal representation in the
senate and allowed some form of equality amongst both small and large states.

Works Cited

The Virginia Plan:

Randolph, Edmund Jennings. Gale Encyclopedia of American Law. Ed. Donna Batten. 3rd ed.
Vol. 8. Detroit: Gale, 2010. 250-251. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 5 Nov. 2015.

Francis Huang

The New Jersey Plan:

Origins of U.S. Government: The New Jersey, or Paterson, Plan. Gale Encyclopedia of American
Law. Ed. Donna Batten. 3rd ed. Vol. 13. Detroit: Gale, 2011. 110. Gale Virtual Reference
Library. Web. 5 Nov. 2015.

The Connecticut/ The Great Compromise:

Whitfield, Theodore M. Connecticut Compromise. Dictionary of American History. Ed. Stanley
I. Kutler. 3rd. ed. Vol. 2. New York: Charles Scribner, 2003. 359. U.S. History in Context. Web. 5
Nov. 2015.