January 19: Electing Senators
For the first 125 years of the United States, voters did not elect their U.S. senators. As adopted in 1788, the Constitution stated that senators would be elected instead by the state legislatures. Allowing the legislatures to elect senators was intended to reassure states’ rights advocates that there was a check on the power of the national government. Avoiding a popular election was also seen as a way to provide balance in Congress, offsetting the populism of the House of Representatives.
Source: prairiepublic.org
