U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a political entity. There are currently 50 of them, and they are bound together in a federation. Each has a government and can make laws over a particular area that the state covers. All states have a shared sovereignty with the U.S. federal government. People who were born or naturalized in states are citizens of both the United States and the state they are in.[1] People can move between states without asking or saying so, unless a court has said they can't. Four states call themselves "commonwealths" in their official names. Washington, D.C. is a federal district and not a state nor in a state.
States divide their territory into counties, or something similar with different name, which are not sovereign. Most states give their counties some government authority; a few states give them none. State governments get their power from the people of that state. States have a number of States' rights under the United States Constitution. States and the people that live in them are represented in the United States Congress in the Senate and House of Representatives. Each state also selects electors (an equal number to the number of Senators and Representatives from that state) to vote in the Electoral College, which elects the President of the United States. Puerto Rico a territory of the United States is considered as a possible 51st state for the future.
States of the United States[change | change source]
The 50 states, in alphabetical order, along with each state's flag:
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
References[change | change source]
- ↑ Erler, Edward. "Essays on Amendment XIV: Citizenship". The Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original on July 24, 2017. Retrieved January 12, 2016. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)