2. The Colonies were in rebellion. Independence loomed. Anarchy threatened at the gates. So NJ’s revolutionary Provincial Congress assigned a committee to write a constitution to enforce some kind of order “for regulating the internal policy of this Colony.”pic.twitter.com/vFb5SpjMDp
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3. The committee began meeting on June 24, 1776 and adopted a full constitution on July 2. Of course, American history nerds know that that is the day—NOT July 4—that independence was declared in Philadelphia.pic.twitter.com/BGpJvVqzFa
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4. But perhaps the NJ folks weren’t quite as committed as those in Philly. Like New Hampshire & South Carolina before them, the constitution stated that “if Reconciliation between Great Britain & these Colonies should take place” then the document “shall be null & void.”pic.twitter.com/IMrrA0RaSd
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5. The constitution lacked a bill of rights, but did have some interesting rights provisions. For ex, it had the 1st “Privileges or Immunities Clause” in U.S. history, protecting “every privilege & immunity, enjoyed by others” for all Protestants (Catholics weren’t so lucky...).pic.twitter.com/JK96r9UEM1
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6. It also had a right to vote for “all Inhabitants . . . of full Age, who are worth Fifty Pounds.” Legislation in 1790 interpreted this to include women & free blacks. But, the legislation was repealed in 1807. Full suffrage had to wait over 100 years for the 19th Amendment.
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7. All-in-all, the 1776 Constitution very much fit the “legislative supremacy” mood of the day. The legislature appointed the governor, and it doesn't say anything about the judiciary as a branch of government.pic.twitter.com/mtic0VzPDG
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8. What at the time was thought of as a temporary constitution lasted until 1844. Many “opinion leaders” agitated for years for a new constitution, but the consensus was the people were happy with the existing structure, & to not fix what’s not broke.pic.twitter.com/E2n16GAQZi
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9. After the Panic of 1837, though, calls for a new constitution grew. A convention drafted one in 1844, which was adopted. It contained a bill of rights, an elected governor, and other changes that strengthened the separation of powers.pic.twitter.com/fRbhJgGGXT
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10. Although not a new constitution, NJ adopted a number of important amendments in the 1870s. A big focus on these were setting limits on special legislation, a major target of reformers of that era across the country.pic.twitter.com/Rlr5Bpb6Js
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11. The state’s present constitution was adopted in 1947. For the first time, it gave the governor a “real” veto (previously it had only required a majority vote to override) & otherwise strengthened his powers, & guaranteed equal rights for women & collective bargaining.pic.twitter.com/zrVj5bMEj9
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12. But one big issue was, by agreement, left out: the state senate’s system of equal representation by county. This long-criticized malapportionment of power had to wait for SCOTUS’ one-person-one-vote decisions of the 1960s, before the state courts found it unconstitutional.
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13. Sources: Robert Williams, The New Jersey State Constitution (2012); https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/nj15.asp …; https://www.state.nj.us/state/archives/docconstitution.html …
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