 Besides the problems of direct election , the new Constitution was seen as such a radical break with the old system , by which delegates were elected to the Confederation Congress by state legislatures , that the Convention agreed to retain this method of electing senators to make the constitutional change less radical . The more difficult problem was the issue of apportionment . The Connecticut delegation offered a compromise , whereby the number of representatives for each state in the lower house would be apportioned based on the relative size of the state 's population , while the number of representatives in the upper house would be the same for all of the states , irrespective of size . The large states , fearing a diminution of their influence in the legislature under this plan , opposed this proposal . Unable to reach agreement , the delegates decided to leave this issue for further consideration later during the meeting . 
