Introduction to the Stages of Ratification

Upon the release of the Constitution in late September 1787, the debates over it and its ratification began across the states. The debates can be broadly categorized into one of two types: in-doors, and out-of-doors. Those discussions, debates, and compromises that took place within the halls of state governments and the special ratification conventions eventually called in each state, can be said to have taken place “in doors” – that is, inside of formal structures of government.

The “out-of-doors” debates, on the other hand, were those that took place among regular Americans, as they discussed this momentous occasion with their neighbors, at church meetings, in their places of work, and in other public spaces. Most notably this side of the debates was defined by the many newspaper editorials, among which The Federalist is most well-known, that were published across the states, and both reflected and informed the debates and discussions between Americans.

In turn, these out-of-doors debates also shaped the in-doors debates, as elected officials in state governments and those citizens chosen to serve in the ratification conventions took under consideration the arguments of their fellow Americans, expressed both in person and in writing.

In an effort to break this complex event, spread over a year and across the states, into more conceptually manageable elements, Professor Gordon Lloyd has divided the ratification effort into the following six stages:

• Stage I — Now for the Bad News – Fall 1787
• Stage II — The Fall Campaign: Off to a Fast Start – December 1787-January 1788
• Stage III — Winter in New England: Postpone and Compromise – February 1788
• Stage IV — Springtime in the Middle States: And Then There Was One Pillar to Go – April-May 1788
• Stage V — A Long Hot Summer: Nail Biting Time – June-July 1788
• Stage VI — All the Pillars in Place – Late 1788