Delaware was the first U.S. state to ratify the Constitution, an early milestone in the nation’s founding history connected to America’s 250th anniversary.
Delaware ratified the Constitution unanimously on December 7, 1787. Its convention vote was 30–0, making it the first of the 13 states to approve the proposed national framework. The state’s early ratification earned Delaware the nickname “The First State.”
Article Seven of the Constitution required approval from nine states for the document to take effect. New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify on June 21, 1788, putting the Constitution into operation. The remaining states ratified later, with Rhode Island being the last of the original 13 in 1790.
Delaware’s first-place status is sometimes confused with the order of signing the Constitution or with the date a state declared independence. The distinction concerns formal ratification of the Constitution, not participation in the 1776 Declaration of Independence or the 1787 Philadelphia Convention.