which of the following laws would the free-soil party have supported
The Free-Soil Party, which existed from 1848 to 1854, was primarily focused on opposing the expansion of slavery into newly acquired territories. Therefore, they would have supported the following laws:
1. The Wilmot Proviso: This proposed law, introduced by David Wilmot in 1846, sought to ban slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico during the Mexican-American War.
2. The Missouri Compromise of 1820: This compromise allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state, but it also established a boundary line (the 36°30′ parallel) which prohibited slavery in future territories north of the line, except for Missouri. The Free-Soil Party would have supported maintaining this boundary line to restrict the expansion of slavery.
3. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854: The Free-Soil Party strongly opposed this act, which repealed the Missouri Compromise and instead allowed the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide the issue of slavery through popular sovereignty. They believed it opened the possibility for the expansion of slavery and sought to prevent this.
4. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850: The Free-Soil Party would have opposed this law, as it strengthened the enforcement of returning escaped slaves to their owners. They saw it as a compromise that favored the interests of slaveholders and undermined the rights of freed slaves and abolitionists.
Overall, the Free-Soil Party aimed to prevent the spread of slavery into new territories, protect the rights of free individuals, and preserve the principles of the Missouri Compromise.