Uploaded October 2015 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
James Madison and Proportional Representation of States in Congress, by Professor Jack N. Rakove. This short video highlights James Madison’s commitment to proportional representation in the newly-created Congress. However, he did not believe that the size of a state alone played an overly significant role in the decisions of either its citizens or its legislators. Professor Jack Rakove explains how Madison understood the various self-interests of all states and how he tried to account for this variation in crafting the new Constitution.
Professor Jack N. Rakove, William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies, Stanford University.
American History Videos are sponsored by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. These videos are offered to help teachers, students and the general public learn more about America's founding and the Constitution of the United States. www.jamesmadison.gov.
James Madison and Proportional Representation of States in Congress, by Professor Jack N. Rakove. This short video highlights James Madison’s commitment to proportional representation in the newly-created Congress. However, he did not believe that the size of a state alone played an overly significant role in the decisions of either its citizens or its legislators. Professor Jack Rakove explains how Madison understood the various self-interests of all states and how he tried to account for this variation in crafting the new Constitution.
Professor Jack N. Rakove, William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies, Stanford University.
American History Videos are sponsored by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. These videos are offered to help teachers, students and the general public learn more about America's founding and the Constitution of the United States. www.jamesmadison.gov.










