RATIFICATION OF THE CONSTITUTION

The writers of the new document wanted it to be approved by ratifying conventions that would be held in each state. Supporters of the new Constitution began to call themselves Federalists, a term used at the time for a supporter of strong national government. Federalists had faith that the elites that would come to dominate both federal and state governments would act in the interest of the entire nation. Those opposed to the new, stronger national government were soon called Antifederalists. Antifederalists sometimes equated the potential tyranny they saw in the new government with the tyranny that had been practiced by British monarchs. Antifederalists felt that the best protection against the tyranny of a strong central government would be the power of the individual states. In the end, they said that the major problem was that the new government was not based on republican principles and, without a Bill of Rights, was not interested in individual rights. After especially tough fights in New York, Virginia, and Massachusetts, the new Constitution was finally passed by all states (with New York being last) on July 26, 1788.