Federalist No. 39 is the thirty-ninth of the Federalist Papers, entitled "The Conformity of the Plan to Republican Principles." In No. 39, Publius attempts to describe the nature of the United States government as proposed by the Constitution. Rather than a strictly national or federal constitution, Publius argues that the government will be a hybrid of both. He begins by redefining the term "republic," stating three principles that must be present for a true republic to exist:

1. The power to govern must be derived from the consent of the people. This can either be done directly, as when citizens directly vote for members of the House of Representatives, or indirectly, as when the state legislatures elect U.S. Senators. In the time of the founding Senators were not directly elected by the people (changed in 1913 by the 17th amendment.)
2. Representatives elected from the people are the administrators of the government.
3. The terms of service of the Representatives must be limited by time or good behavior.

Publius goes on to describe several aspects of the proposed government. He uses examples such as the House and the ratifying of the constitution itself to show that the new government will be republican in some aspects and federal in others with a balance being the goal. In the end, Publius is arguing for a democratic republic in which the principles are republican but the legitimacy is democratic.

Federalist Papers | 1788 in law | Works by heads of state or government