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United States States: Sovereignty, Structure, and the History of Admission

United States States: Sovereignty, Structure, and the History of Admission The United States is composed of 50 constituent entities known as states. These states operate under a system of...

United States States: Sovereignty, Structure, and the History of Admission

The United States is composed of 50 constituent entities known as states. These states operate under a system of shared sovereignty, meaning they hold significant independent power while coexisting with the federal government. Because of this dual authority, Americans hold citizenship in both the federal republic and the specific state in which they reside.

While most entities are officially called states, four specific locations—Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia—use the term commonwealth in their official names.

The order in which the original 13 states ratified the 1787 Constitution, then the order in which the others were admitted to the Union
The order in which the original 13 states ratified the 1787 Constitution, then the order in which the others were admitted to the Union

The Foundations of State Power and Governance

States serve as the primary subdivisions of the nation. Under the United States Constitution, states possess all powers that are not explicitly granted to the federal government or prohibited to them by the Constitution. This framework allows state governments to manage matters of local concern, including:

  • Regulating intrastate commerce (trade occurring within a single state).
  • Conducting and managing elections.
  • Establishing local government structures.
  • Setting public school policies.
  • Overseeing non-federal road construction and maintenance.

Each state functions as a self-governing entity with its own constitution based on republican principles. To manage these responsibilities, every state maintains a government divided into three distinct branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.

Representation in the Federal Government

Despite their individual sovereignty, all states and their residents are integrated into the federal legislative process through the U.S. Congress. This is a bicameral legislature, meaning it is composed of two separate chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The Senate and the House of Representatives

Representation in Congress is balanced between equality and population:

  • The Senate: Every state is represented by exactly two senators, ensuring equal standing regardless of size.
  • The House of Representatives: Each state is entitled to at least one representative. The total number of representatives a state receives is determined by its population, as measured during the decennial census (a population count conducted every ten years).

The Electoral College

States also play a critical role in electing the nation's leadership. Each state is assigned a specific number of electors for the Electoral College, the body responsible for electing the President and Vice President. A state's number of electors is equal to its total number of representatives and senators in Congress.

The Evolution of the Union

The expansion of the United States from its original 13 colonies to the current 50 states is governed by Article IV, Section 3, Clause 1 of the Constitution, which grants Congress the authority to admit new states. A fundamental principle of the Union is that every new state is admitted on an equal footing with the existing states.

Key Facts

  • Total States: 50 constituent entities.
  • Original States: 13 states formed from the original colonies.
  • Governance: Each state has an executive, legislative, and judicial branch.
  • Senate Representation: Exactly 2 senators per state.
  • Admission Authority: Granted to Congress by the U.S. Constitution.

Chronology of Statehood

The following table outlines the progression of states into the Union, beginning with the original 13 that ratified the 1787 Constitution, followed by subsequent admissions via Acts of Congress.

List of U.S. States and Dates of Admission or Ratification
# State Date (admitted or ratified) Formed from
1DelawareDecember 7, 1787 (ratified)Colony of Delaware
2PennsylvaniaDecember 12, 1787 (ratified)Proprietary Province of Pennsylvania
3New JerseyDecember 18, 1787 (ratified)Crown Colony of New Jersey
4GeorgiaJanuary 2, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony of Georgia
5ConnecticutJanuary 9, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony of Connecticut
6MassachusettsFebruary 6, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony of Massachusetts Bay
7MarylandApril 28, 1788 (ratified)Proprietary Province of Maryland
8South CarolinaMay 23, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony of South Carolina
9New HampshireJune 21, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony of New Hampshire
10VirginiaJune 25, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony and Dominion of Virginia
11New YorkJuly 26, 1788 (ratified)Crown Colony of New York
12North CarolinaNovember 21, 1789 (ratified)Crown Colony of North Carolina
13Rhode IslandMay 29, 1790 (ratified)Crown Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
14VermontMarch 4, 1791 (admitted)Vermont Republic
15KentuckyJune 1, 1792 (admitted)Virginia
16TennesseeJune 1, 1796 (admitted)Southwest Territory
17OhioMarch 1, 1803 (admitted)Northwest Territory (part)
18LouisianaApril 30, 1812 (admitted)Territory of Orleans
19IndianaDecember 11, 1816 (admitted)Indiana Territory
20MississippiDecember 10, 1817 (admitted)Mississippi Territory
21IllinoisDecember 3, 1818 (admitted)Illinois Territory (part)
22AlabamaDecember 14, 1819 (admitted)Alabama Territory
23MaineMarch 15, 1820 (admitted)Massachusetts (District of Maine)
24MissouriAugust 10, 1821 (admitted)Missouri Territory (part)
25ArkansasJune 15, 1836 (admitted)Arkansas Territory
26MichiganJanuary 26, 1837 (admitted)Michigan Territory
27FloridaMarch 3, 1845 (admitted)Florida Territory
28TexasDecember 29, 1845 (admitted)Republic of Texas
29IowaDecember 28, 1846 (admitted)Iowa Territory (part)
30WisconsinMay 29, 1848 (admitted)Wisconsin Territory (part)
31CaliforniaSeptember 9, 1850 (admitted)Unorganized territory / Mexican Cession (part)
32MinnesotaMay 11, 1858 (admitted)Minnesota Territory (part)
33OregonFebruary 14, 1859 (admitted)Oregon Territory (part)
34KansasJanuary 29, 1861 (admitted)Kansas Territory (part)
35West VirginiaJune 20, 1863 (admitted)Virginia
36NevadaOctober 31, 1864 (admitted)Nevada Territory
37NebraskaMarch 1, 1867 (admitted)Nebraska Territory
38ColoradoAugust 1, 1876 (admitted)Colorado Territory
39North DakotaNovember 2, 1889 (admitted)Dakota Territory (part)
40South DakotaNovember 2, 1889 (admitted)Dakota Territory (part)
41MontanaNovember 8, 1889 (admitted)Montana Territory
42WashingtonNovember 11, 1889 (admitted)Washington Territory
43IdahoJuly 3, 1890 (admitted)Idaho Territory
44WyomingJuly 10, 1890 (admitted)Wyoming Territory
45UtahJanuary 4, 1896 (admitted)Utah Territory
46OklahomaNovember 16, 1907 (admitted)Oklahoma Territory and Indian Territory
47New MexicoJanuary 6, 1912 (admitted)New Mexico Territory
48ArizonaFebruary 14, 1912 (admitted)Arizona Territory
49AlaskaJanuary 3, 1959 (admitted)Territory of Alaska
50HawaiiAugust 21, 1959 (admitted)Territory of Hawaii

Frequently Asked Questions

Do all states have the same name format?

No. While most are called states, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia officially use the term commonwealth.

How is the number of representatives for a state determined?

The size of a state's House delegation depends on its total population, which is determined by the most recent constitutionally mandated decennial census.

What is the difference between a state and a territory?

States are constituent entities that share sovereignty with the federal government and have full representation in Congress. Territories, such as those from which many states were formed, are different administrative divisions that eventually may be admitted as states.

How many senators does each state have?

Each state is represented by exactly two senators in the U.S. Senate.

What determines a state's number of electors?

A state's number of electors in the Electoral College is equal to the total of its representatives and senators in Congress.

Who has the power to admit new states?

Under Article IV of the Constitution, Congress has the authority to admit new states into the Union.

References

  1. This list does not account for the secession of 11 states (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas) during the Civil War to form the Confederate States of America, nor for the subsequent restoration of those states to the Union, or each state's "readmission to representation in Congress" after the war, as the federal government does not give legal recognition to their having left the Union. Also, the Constitution is silent on the question of whether states have the power to secede from the Union, but the Supreme Court held that a state cannot unilaterally do so in Texas v. White (1869).[7]
  2. Known at the time as the "Three Lower Counties Upon Delaware", a semi-autonomous region of Pennsylvania, Delaware became a state on June 15, 1776, when the Delaware Assembly formally adopted a resolution declaring an end to Delaware's status as a colony of Great Britain and establishing the three counties as an independent state under the authority of "the Government of the Counties of New Castle, Kent and Sussex Upon Delaware", effectivelly delinking the Lower Counties from Pennsylvania altogether.[9]
  3. Between 1749 and 1764 the provincial governor of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth, issued approximately 135 grants for unoccupied land claimed by New Hampshire west of the Connecticut River (in what is today southern Vermont), territory that was also claimed by New York. The resulting "New Hampshire Grants" dispute led to the rise of the Green Mountain Boys, and the later establishment of the Vermont Republic. New Hampshire's claim upon the land was extinguished in 1764 by royal order of George III, and in 1790 the State of New York ceded its land claim to Vermont for 30,000 dollars.
  4. The Virginia General Assembly adopted legislation on December 18, 1789, separating its "District of Kentucky" from the rest of the State and approving its statehood.[17]
  5. The exact date upon which Ohio became a state is unclear. On April 30, 1802, the 7th Congress had passed an act "authorizing the inhabitants of Ohio to form a Constitution and state government, and admission of Ohio into the Union" (Sess. 1, ch. 40, 2 Stat. 173). On February 19, 1803, the same Congress passed an act "providing for the execution of the laws of the United States in the State of Ohio" (Sess. 2, ch. 7, 2 Stat. 201). Neither act, however, set a formal date of statehood. An official statehood date for Ohio was not set until 1953, when the 83rd Congress passed a Joint resolution "for admitting the State of Ohio into the Union", (Pub. L. 83–204, 67 Stat. 407, enacted August 7, 1953) which designated March 1, 1803, as that date.[20]

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