In Essay #61, Concerning the Power of Congress to Regulate the Election of Members, Hamilton responds to the claim that the Constitution should have required elections to be held in the counties where the electors reside.
Hamilton dismisses this claim by pointing out that the issue is not significant enough to hold up the ratification of the entire Constitution.
Hamilton asserts that there will be a significant advantage in allowing Congress to set a uniform time for elections to be held.
- Placing the entire house and one third of the senate before the people for reelection at the same time will help ensure that the same detrimental “spirit” or “faction” will not continue for long in Congress;
- If each state could hold elections at different times, then members of Congress would be added and removed gradually and thus make new members, few in number, susceptible to pressure from the majority of Congress to support a particular faction detrimental to the public good.
Credit for the summary and analysis of Essay #61 is given to Brittany Nelson and Christopher Higgins (second revision 09/15/2011). Weinbloom, Elizabeth ed. “The Federalist Papers Essay #61 Summary and Analysis”. GradeSaver, 30 December 2011 Web. 15 February 2019.
You can read a summary and analysis of Essay #61 by clicking HERE.
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