Chapter 1 AICE US HISTORY

Electoral College

A body of electors established by the United States Constitution that formally elects the president and vice president, reflecting the popular vote but not bound by it directly.

Veto

The constitutional power of an executive authority (such as the U.S. president) to reject legislation passed by a legislative body, preventing its enactment unless overridden.

House of Representatives

The lower chamber of the United States Congress, composed of members apportioned according to the population of each state, tasked with initiating revenue bills and impeachments.

Senate

The upper chamber of the U.S. Congress, consisting of two senators from each state, with responsibilities including ratifying treaties, confirming appointments, and conducting impeachment trials.

Separation of Powers

A constitutional principle that divides governmental authority among legislative, executive, and judicial branches to prevent the concentration of power and ensure mutual independence.

Checks and Balances

A system in which each branch of government exercises some measure of control over the others, preventing any one branch from dominating the government.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the United States Constitution, guaranteeing individual liberties such as freedom of speech, religion, and due process under the law.

Abolitionists

Individuals and groups who advocated for the immediate end of slavery throughout the United States, often driven by moral, religious, and political convictions.

Tariff

A tax or duty imposed by a government on imported goods, used to raise revenue or protect domestic industries from foreign competition.

Sectionalism

Strong loyalty to the interests of one's own region or section of the country rather than to the country as a whole, often contributing to political divisions.

Secession

The formal withdrawal of a state from the Union, a process most notably undertaken by Southern states prior to the outbreak of the American Civil War.

Annex

To formally incorporate a territory into an existing political unit, such as a country or state, often through legislative action or military force.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

A legislative agreement admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, while prohibiting slavery north of the 36°30' parallel in the Louisiana Territory.

Compromise of 1850

A series of measures aimed at resolving disputes over the status of territories acquired during the Mexican-American War, including the admission of California as a free state and the enforcement of a stricter Fugitive Slave Act.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that the residents of a territory should have the right to decide by voting whether to allow slavery or not.

Fugitive Slave Act

Part of the Compromise of 1850, this law required that escaped slaves be returned to their owners even if they were found in free states, and penalized individuals who aided runaways.

Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

Legislation that allowed settlers in Kansas and Nebraska territories to determine the status of slavery through popular sovereignty, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise.

Dred Scott

An enslaved man who sued for his freedom on the basis of residence in a free territory; his case resulted in a Supreme Court decision denying citizenship to African Americans and affirming the legality of slavery in territories.

Roger Taney

Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (1836–1864), best known for delivering the majority opinion in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case, reinforcing the institution of slavery.

John Brown

A militant abolitionist who led an armed insurrection at Harpers Ferry in 1859, aiming to initiate a slave uprising; his actions deepened sectional tensions prior to the Civil War.