eralists. They were not political parties in the strict sense but would evolve into parties within a few years. The two groups were largely from different social classes. The Federalists can be considered aristocrats, and the Antifederalists were democrats, state-centered men with local interests and loyalties. As the two groups debated the issues surrounding the writing of the Constitution, the Antifederalists wanted to protect their individual, local interests from any encroachment by the federal system being promoted by the Federalists. The final document is a compromise on both sides, creating a republican form of government that protected the interests of both. The two groups can be described as being made up of different types of politicians with different agendas and interests: the Federalists represented the urbane and cosmopolitan element, and the Antifederalists more parochial interests (Lasser 66).
Political parties are something of a problem in any analysis of the American political system because in a way the parties have been grafted onto the underlying poli
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