Ratification of the United States Constitution by Rhode Island the convention instead set about drafting a new Constitution. Rhode Island was the only state to not participate in its proceedings. By April 1, 1789, the new constitution had entered into force after the required nine states had completed their ratification processes. The First United States Congress had already convened, and the Congress had already passed twelve proposed amendments, but Rhode Island still had not ratified the new Constitution and continued to effectively operate outside the new governmental structure. Opposition was chiefly due to the paper money issued in Rhode Island pounds since 1786 by the governing Country Party, intended
History of the New Jersey State Constitution later on July 2, 1776, the first New Jersey State Constitution reflected the turbulence and uncertainty of the moment. Its primary objective was to provide a basic governmental framework and preempt New Jersey's fall into anarchy. And yet despite being conceived in a state of military emergency, this Constitution was durable enough to serve as the charter document for the State government for the next 68 years. A notable aspect of this original 1776 New Jersey State Constitution is that it provisioned suffrage to citizens without regard to gender or race. New Jersey stood alone among the original thirteen states