During the statehood struggle for western Virginia, the year 1816 was a critical one. The perceived inequality on the political scene in Virginia continued to push the two sections of the state further apart, widening the gap. In 1816, Thomas Jefferson suggested legislative representation be based on the white population, that all free white males be given voting privileges and that state and local officials would be subject to election by the popular vote. In a letter to Samuel Kercheval, Jefferson said “let it be agreed that a government is republican in proportion as every member composing it has his equal voice in the direction of its concerns (not indeed in person, which would be impracticable beyond the limits of a city, or small township, but) by representatives chosen by himself, and responsible to him at short periods, and let us bring to the test of this canon every branch of our constitution. In the legislature, the House of Representatives is chosen by less than half the people, and not at all in proportion to those who do choose. The Senate is still more disproportionate.” Western Virginia’s delegation met to discuss many of those same ideas and to develop their own strategy in the House and Senate chambers. Their convention was held in Staunton in the Shenandoah Valley. Even though the 49 eastern counties had a majority in the legislature, the western counties were growing due to more people moving across the Allegheny Mountains. The Tidewater delegates were not anxious to give up their power – something that they had enjoyed since the commonwealth was founded. That was not setting well with the western representatives. But the western Virginia delegates could not agree on any long-term answers to the region’s problems. The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia did, in fact, pass new legislation that same year. And it was favorable, in some respects, to those who lived in the western reaches of the state. The western region got greater representation with the reapportionment based on the white male population. In addition, the legislative body set up a Board of Public Works. It was to be their charge to develop and/or expand the road and canal systems in western Virginia. But western Virginians were still feeling discriminated against by the state laws requiring voting rights that were tied to land ownership. Virginia was bucking the national trend in this manner, as it was one of only two states still holding the opinion that regarded land owners as eligible to vote. The state of Pennsylvania had already abolished property requirements for voting in 1776 by allowing adult white men who paid taxes the right to vote. Representation in the Virginia General Assembly was by county rather than by population. Eastern Virginia had more counties. And western Virginians were also left out in the election of the governor, lieutenant governor, judges, the attorney general and U. S. Senators because they had less representation. Those public officials were still being elected by the Virginia General Assembly rather than by popular vote.
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