From 1814 to 1815, Floyd was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and established a record as a strong nationalist. He supported a joint resolution to coordinate Virginia's defense with the Federal government as opposed to the contending resolution to "authorize the governor to 'communicate' with the 'Government of the United States. In addition, Floyd supported a bill that authorized Virginia to raise troops and place them at the order of the federal government, as well as supporting a resolution to condemn the terms of peace proposed by the British commissioners at Ghent. He was also an opponent of the tactics of the Federalist leader, Charles F. Mercer, who questioned whether the United States was a sovereign country.