The ratification of the __________ Amendment actually increased the voting strength of Southern states. Since there were now no enslaved people, African Americans would all be counted for purposes of representation. As a result, there would be a large number of new Southern Congressmen.
Tenth
Eleventh
Thirteenth
Fourteenth
Thirteenth
The correct answer is the Fourteenth Amendment. The ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment increased the voting strength of Southern states. This is because the amendment granted citizenship and equal protection under the law to all individuals born or naturalized in the United States, including formerly enslaved African Americans. Consequently, African Americans would now be counted for the purpose of representation, leading to the addition of a large number of new Southern Congressmen.
The correct answer is the Thirteenth Amendment. The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1865 and abolished slavery throughout the United States. By eliminating slavery, it meant that African Americans were no longer considered property and were recognized as free individuals. This fundamental change in the status of African Americans had a significant impact on the political landscape, particularly in the Southern states.
Prior to the Thirteenth Amendment, Southern states had a substantial number of enslaved individuals, who were not counted as full persons for the purposes of representation in Congress. This was known as the Three-Fifths Compromise, which treated each enslaved person as three-fifths of a free person in determining a state's total population. As a result, Southern states had fewer seats in Congress than they would have if all the enslaved people were counted.
With the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment, there was a dramatic shift in the voting strength of Southern states. African Americans, who were previously enslaved, were now considered free citizens and were counted as full individuals for representation purposes. This led to an increase in the number of seats Southern states held in Congress since the population of African Americans was significant in those states. Hence, the Thirteenth Amendment actually increased the voting strength of Southern states by allowing a large number of African Americans to be counted for purposes of representation.