Which document provided a plan for the Northwest Territory to admit new states on equal footing?

Which document provided a plan for the Northwest Territory to admit new states on equal footing?

• A. Bill of Rights
• B. U.S. Constitution
• C. Northwest Ordinance
• D. Articles of Confederation

Answer: (C)

The Northwest Ordinance is the one that laid out a clear path for turning a territory into states on equal footing with existing states. It set up a process for the Northwest Territory: a governor, secretary, and three judges administer the territory; once the population reached 5,000 free residents, they could elect a legislature; once it reached 60,000, they could draft a constitution and petition to become a state, to be admitted into the Union as an equal member. It also protected rights and prohibited slavery in that territory. The other documents don’t provide this specific process for admitting new states: the Bill of Rights focuses on protecting individual rights within the government, the U.S. Constitution outlines the framework of the national government but not a territory-to-state admission plan, and the Articles of Confederation created a weaker central government without a system for orderly statehood.

The Northwest Ordinance is the one that laid out a clear path for turning a territory into states on equal footing with existing states. It set up a process for the Northwest Territory: a governor, secretary, and three judges administer the territory; once the population reached 5,000 free residents, they could elect a legislature; once it reached 60,000, they could draft a constitution and petition to become a state, to be admitted into the Union as an equal member. It also protected rights and prohibited slavery in that territory. The other documents don’t provide this specific process for admitting new states: the Bill of Rights focuses on protecting individual rights within the government, the U.S. Constitution outlines the framework of the national government but not a territory-to-state admission plan, and the Articles of Confederation created a weaker central government without a system for orderly statehood.