The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement between the northern and southern states during the Constitutional Convention of 1787. It was a compromise between the two sides on the issue of how slaves would be counted when determining a state’s population for the purpose of representation in Congress. The compromise stated that for every five slaves a state had, three would be counted as part of the population. This meant that the southern states would get more representation in Congress than they would have if slaves were not counted at all, but less than if they were counted as a full person. The Three-Fifths Compromise was a major factor in the creation of the Constitution and was a major victory for the southern states.
