Federalist No. 55 is an essay by James Madison, the fifty-fifth of the Federalist Papers. It was published on February 13, 1788 under the pseudonym Publius, the name under which all the Federalist Papers were published. In this paper, Madison examines the size of the United States House of Representatives. It is titled, "The Total Number of the House of Representatives."
The paper discusses critics' objections to the relatively small size of the House of Representatives (sixty-five members). Madison notes that the size of the House will increase as population increases. In addition, he states that the small size does not put the public liberty in danger because of the checks and balances relationship the House of Representatives has with the state legislatures, as well as the fact every member is voted in by the people every two years.
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