oters in each district, to actually choose
the senator from that district. All legislation originated in the House
of Delegates, the Senate being allowed to amend all laws except
appropriation bills, which it had to accept or reject completely.

Mindful of royal authority and disdainful of executive power, the
constitution emasculated the power of the governor, leaving him a "mere
phantom". Elected annually by the combined vote of the General Assembly
for a maximum of three consecutive terms, the governor had no veto power
and virtually no power of executive action. He could not act between
legislative sessions without approval of an eight-man Council of State.
This council was elected by the assembly "to assist in the administration
of government". In truth, the council restrained the executive.

The virtual semi-autonomy of the county courts and the justices of the
peace remained. A system of state courts was provided for, its judges
also elected by the assembly. Property qualifications for voters and for
office holders continued in force. No clergymen were permitted to hold
state office.[36]

[36] Rutland, Mason, I, 295-310.

The constitution, then retained what had worked well in the past--the
General Assembly and the county court system; granted to the House of
Delegates the written powers it had claimed as the colonial House of
Burgesses; eliminated the royally elected council, but retained the idea
of an upper house composed of men of property; and totally restrained the
governor. Thus, if one definition of a commonwealth is a government in
which the legislature is supreme, then Virginia in 1776 was certainly a
commonwealth. This constitution became a model for many other state
governments, although most states benefited from the unfortunate
experiences of governors Henry (1776-1779) and Jefferson (1779-1781) and
gave their executives greater administrative latitude.

Jefferson had hastened back from Philadelphia to try to influence the
writing of the constitution. He arrived too late to have much effect
beyond appending to the constitution a preamble paraphrasing the
Declaration of Independence. But many of his ideas were too
"democratical". He feared the constitution did not have the force of true
law, for it had been written by a convention not elected for that purpose
by the people. Nor had the people voted directly on the constitution.
Jefferson was even more concerned about the remaining vestiges