By Ethan Hollander, Wabash College
As the American Revolutionary War was drawing to a close, the new states of America were anything but united. The 13 colonies had become 13 independent states in 1783. But until the US Constitution came into force six years later, the only thing that really united the states was a loose agreement known as the Articles of Confederation.
Need for Common Set of Laws
There was no president, no national courts, and maybe most importantly, no central authority to tax or enforce the law. In a sense, the Articles of Confederation were little more than an international alliance, or, as they called it, a league of friendship.
These were precarious times for the former colonies. Their Confederation was weak and ineffective, they faced powerful enemies from within and without, and many feared that their very survival would depend on their ability to come together and unify under a common set of laws.
That common set of laws came about in 1789, with the newly ratified Constitution of the United States. That’s what really unified the states, and that’s what created the federal government, and so that’s what really made the United States a state in the true sense of the word.
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Centralization of Republic
The creation of this new federal government wasn’t inevitable, and it wasn’t without controversy. Many at the time—they came to be known as Anti-Federalists—feared that a strong central government would threaten their autonomy and their liberty. They feared that by giving the central government so much power, they’d risk replacing the tyranny of Great Britain with the tyranny of their own federal government. And a lot of Anti-Federalists didn’t like giving up a say over local affairs—particularly if they lived in a small state, and they recognized that unification would dilute their influence.
But there were others (Alexander Hamilton was among the most famous) who thought that centralization of the new republic hadn’t gone far enough, and that for this great experiment in representative democracy to work, they’d need the combined powers of all the states working together—and a central government that was sufficiently powerful to make them to do so.
Federalism
Federalism—a system of government that brings together individual states under a common government—was therefore a compromise of sorts: an attempt to preserve some degree of local control while also reaping the benefits of centralization. But because federalism required a sacrifice of local autonomy, Americans—and people around the world—have been arguing about the balance between state and federal control ever since.
Federalism is cobbled together from separate parts, and stitched to hold them together in place. As a way of structuring government, it’s unusual and maybe dangerous, but in a diverse society where people want different things, the dual layers of authority found in federalism are a tempting solution to the problem of collective decision-making.
This puts federalism at the very center of politics’ most enduring questions.
Federal Governments and Constituent Units
The constituent units of a federation go by different names in different parts of the world. They’re often called states—reflecting the fact that, historically, some of them were sovereign entities in their own right at some point in the past. But they’re also called provinces in Canada and Argentina, regions in Belgium, cantons in Switzerland, or Länder (or ‘lands’) in Germany.
The division of labor between federal governments and their constituent units also differs a lot from place to place. Oftentimes, the federal government will take care of things like foreign policy and national defense, and it’ll regulate trade and settle disputes between the regions. But this leaves a lot for the individual states or provinces to determine on their own: everything from language policy and education to the day-to-day laws that govern everything from health care to transportation and contracts.
Federal and Regional Jurisdictions
In the United States and Canada, even the legal system itself can differ from state to state or province to province.
Inevitably, federal and regional jurisdictions sometimes overlap: In the United States, the federal government sets the dates on which federal elections occur, but individual states control the time of day that polls are open, whether or not they allow early voting, and what kinds of ID you need to register.
And that’s remarkable when we think about it.
We are electing federal officials—the president, senators, members of Congress—and yet most of the rules that regulate those elections are left to the individual states. And sometimes state election law differs quite dramatically! Until 1920, women could vote in some US states but not others. And until 1971, the voting age still differed from state to state!
The balance of power between federal and regional authorities is ever-changing and depends on the particular compromise that every country makes for itself. And that balance of power is often a matter of intense political debate.
Common Questions about Federalism
Federalism is a system of government that brings together individual states under a common government. It is a compromise of sorts: an attempt to preserve some degree of local control while also reaping the benefits of centralization.
The constituent units of a federation go by different names in different parts of the world. They’re often called states—reflecting the fact that, historically, some of them were sovereign entities in their own right at some point in the past. But they’re also called provinces in Canada and Argentina, regions in Belgium, cantons in Switzerland, or Länder (or ‘lands’) in Germany.
Oftentimes, the federal government takes care of things like foreign policy and national defense, regulates trade, and settles disputes between the regions. But this leaves a lot for the individual states or provinces to determine on their own: everything from language policy and education to the day-to-day laws that govern everything from health care to transportation and contracts.
