The Federalist Papers

Hamilton now turns to the powers invested in the executive branch. Given the American people’s profound aversion to monarchy, arguably the most contentious debates around the Constitution concern the executive branch—and specifically the President. Yet Hamilton aggressively rejects any comparison between the offices of the King of Great Britain and the President of the United States, casting those who make such comparisons as being guilty of “deliberate imposture and deception” (343). To illustrate the ill faith with which critics of federal executive powers approach the matter, he debunks the pervasive yet wholly false claim that the President, not state governors, is responsible for filling vacancies on the Senate.

Hamilton is happy to report that the method of electing the President has met with little resistance from even the Constitution’s most ardent critics. Each state will choose electors to vote for the President. The number of electors per state will be equal to the number of that state’s representatives and senators. It is crucial, Hamilton states, that these bodies are newly formed every four years for this purpose, to safeguard against foreign tampering of individual electors. For that same reason, these individuals cannot be sitting senators, representatives, or other officers of the federal government.