Which statements describe Stephen Douglass?

Which statements describe Stephen Douglass?

• A. A Democrat from Illinois who believed Popular Sovereignty should decide the issue of slavery in new territories
• B. A Republican from Illinois who believed slavery should be abolished in new territories
• C. A Democrat from Ohio who supported abolition nationwide
• D. A Whig from Illinois who supported federal protection of slavery in new territories

Answer: (A)

Popular sovereignty is the idea that residents of a territory should decide for themselves whether slavery will be legal there. Stephen A. Douglas, a Democrat from Illinois, championed this approach and argued that the people in new territories should vote to determine slavery’s status. He pushed the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 to implement this, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise line and leaving the decision to territorial voters. This description fits him because he was Illinois-based and affiliated with the Democratic Party, and because his stance centered on letting people decide by vote rather than having slavery declared or forbidden by federal mandates. He wasn’t a Republican advocating nationwide abolition, nor a Whig seeking federal protection of slavery, nor from Ohio, so those alternatives don’t match his actual position and background.

Popular sovereignty is the idea that residents of a territory should decide for themselves whether slavery will be legal there. Stephen A. Douglas, a Democrat from Illinois, championed this approach and argued that the people in new territories should vote to determine slavery’s status. He pushed the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 to implement this, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise line and leaving the decision to territorial voters. This description fits him because he was Illinois-based and affiliated with the Democratic Party, and because his stance centered on letting people decide by vote rather than having slavery declared or forbidden by federal mandates. He wasn’t a Republican advocating nationwide abolition, nor a Whig seeking federal protection of slavery, nor from Ohio, so those alternatives don’t match his actual position and background.