Which Founding Father wrote the principal draft of the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson wrote the principal draft of the Declaration of Independence.

Congress appointed Jefferson to the Committee of Five, which also included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert Livingston. The committee was tasked with preparing a declaration explaining the colonies’ decision to separate from Great Britain. Jefferson produced the main draft, which the committee reviewed before Congress debated and edited it.

Jefferson was chosen partly because of his reputation as a strong writer and because he represented Virginia. The final document was therefore a collaborative political work, not a text created by Jefferson alone. Congress made changes, including removing or revising passages before adopting the Declaration.

Jefferson later became the third president of the United States. His authorship is distinct from John Hancock’s role as president of Congress and from Benjamin Franklin’s role on the drafting committee. Those three figures are often linked to the document, but they contributed in different ways.