popular sovereignty

[ pop-yuh-ler sov-rin-tee, suhv-rin-tee ]

/ ˈpɒp yə lər ˈsɒv rɪn ti, ˈsʌv rɪn ti /

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noun

the doctrine that sovereign power is vested in the people and that those chosen to govern, as trustees of such power, must exercise it in conformity with the general will.

American History. (before the Civil War) a doctrine, held chiefly by the opponents of the abolitionists, that the people living in a territory should be free of federal interference in determining domestic policy, especially with respect to slavery.

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Origin of popular sovereignty

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Words nearby popular sovereignty

How to use popular sovereignty in a sentence

The core of our political dysfunction is that the Republican Party has increasingly become an anti-democratic party, which refuses to accept the legitimacy of its opponents or the supremacy of popular sovereignty that defines a democracy.
Are we entering a new era of political violence?|Sean Illing|January 7, 2021|Vox
Douglas had staked his political career on the doctrine of popular sovereignty, which granted settlers the right to establish free or enslaved territories.
Gracious losers protect our democracy. Sore ones undermine it.|Edward McClelland|January 6, 2021|Washington Post
The simple, awful truth is that free speech has never been particularly popular in America.
How the PC Police Threaten Free Speech|Nick Gillespie|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Charles “Father” Coughlin, a raving anti-Semite, was one of the most popular radio hosts in the country.
Why Was Bess Myerson the First and Last Jewish Miss America?|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

While this deferred action is controversial in the United States, in Mexico, what Obama did is universally popular.
Why Mexicans Are Enraged by Obama’s Big Tuesday Meeting|Ruben Navarrette Jr.|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“He was a brave field commander and an expert in intelligence, and in organizing popular and tribal forces,” said the eulogist.
What an Iranian Funeral Tells Us About the Wars in Iraq|IranWire|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Whether he gets his full due in popular culture remains to be seen.
Ed Brooke: The Senate's Civil Rights Pioneer and Prophet of a Post-Racial America|John Avlon|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I know that in putting this before you I challenge some of the most popular affectations of cultivated people.
The Salvaging Of Civilisation|H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
As a good-looking young bachelor, though a detrimental, he had been very popular.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
In France the habit of snuffing was the most popular mode and to this day the custom is more general than elsewhere.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
This work describes the fops and men of fashion of its time, and shows how popular the custom of tobacco taking had become.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Did he at all intrench upon your Sovereignty in Verse, because he had now and then written a Comedy that succeeded?
A Letter from Mr. Cibber to Mr. Pope|Colley Cibber

British Dictionary definitions for popular sovereignty

popular sovereignty

noun

(in the pre-Civil War US) the doctrine that the inhabitants of a territory should be free from federal interference in determining their own domestic policy, esp in deciding whether or not to allow slavery

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012