Declaration of Independence
Kansas
Kansas
'Popular Sovereignty' was the term coined by Stephen Douglas for a local vote on slavery in each new state as it joined the Union. It was the basis of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which was first tested - disastrously - when Kansas was admitted as free soil. This followed the unsuccessful Compromise of 1850, which did not involve Popular Sovereignty.
One of the first cases of popular sovereignty was tested during the American Revolution, when colonists rebelled against British rule to establish a government based on the consent of the governed. This concept was later enshrined in the United States Constitution, reflecting the idea that political authority is derived from the people.
Popular sovereignty
The United States Constitution is based on the concept of popular sovereignty, which means rule by the people. The first three words of the Constitution---”We, the people”---imply popular sovereignty. Article 7 of the Constitution requires that nine states (the people of those states via the ballot box and representatives) approve (ratify) the new Constitution before it goes into effect. Article 5 of the Constitution provides for ways to amend the Constitution. Amendments are made through elected representatives of the people, another form of popular sovereignty. Article 1 creates the legislative branch and requires that representatives to Congress are elected by the people that are being represented. Thus, the concept of popular sovereignty is implied in all three Articles.
John Locke
In america, Steven Douglas, a Federalist, was the first to propose popular sovereignty in congress for choosing whether a state would become free or slave-minded.
According to the principle of popular sovereignty, the final ruling power is held by the people. This means that governments and leaders derive their authority and legitimacy from the consent of the governed, and the people have the ultimate right to determine their own governance through elections and participation in the political process.
It was called 'Popular Sovereignty', and Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois was confident that it would settle the issue and avert war. In fact, it caused the bloodshed the first time it was tried - in Kansas - and helped to start the war.
The Bill of Rights is in the US Constitution. They are the first ten amendments. The Bill of Rights are not found in the original part of the document because the framers argued over their inclusion in the document. They were afraid that if they were to write out a Bill of Rights that it would limit the American people to only those that were directly expressed in the document.