| Maryland State Senate Membership
Per Article 15 of the 1776 Constitution,
http://aomol.msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc4800/sc4872/003145/html/m3145-0207.html
Electors shall gather and "proceed to elect.....fifteen senators (nine of whom to be residents on the western, and six to be residents on the eastern shore)"
Despite numerous attempts to "reform" the Senate (see Everstine's The General Assembly of Maryland, 1776-1850 pp. 443-448), direct election of senators and an expansion of the membership did not happen until the 1838 session. This was the result of a constitutional amendment passed in 1836 (see 1836 Laws of Maryland chapter 197, http://aomol.msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc2900/sc2908/000001/000537/html/am537--188.html). I believe an amendment had to pass the legislature in 2 concurrent sessions in order to take effect. The 1836 amendment provided for twenty-one senators beginning with the December 1838 session (see section 3 of this law).
1838 seems to be a date in which numerous constitutional changes concerning the form of MD government took place, including the election of William Grason, the first governor elected by popular vote. Howard County was created via constitutional amendment at this time as well (does this include an addition of a Senate seat for it as well as when other counties were created?)
The constitution adopted during the 1850 convention simply states that "Every county of the State and the city of Baltimore, shall be entitled to elect one Senator" (see Art. II sec. 2, http://aomol.msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc2900/sc2908/000001/000101/html/am101d--8.html). New counties came out of the constitution as well.
(JH, 3/17/09) |
