What impact did the Kansas-Nebraska Act have on the expansion of slavery in the territories?

The Kansas-Nebraska Act, passed in 1854, is significant because it introduced the concept of popular sovereignty, which allowed the settlers of the Kansas and Nebraska territories to vote on whether slavery would be allowed in their territories. This was a shift from the earlier Missouri Compromise, which had established specific geographic boundaries to limit the spread of slavery. By allowing the residents to decide for themselves, the act opened the door for the possibility of expanding slavery into areas that had previously been designated as free.

This approach led to intense conflict, known as "Bleeding Kansas," where pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions clashed violently as they sought to influence the outcome of these votes. The Kansas-Nebraska Act highlighted the deep divisions in the country over the issue of slavery, ultimately contributing to the tensions that would lead to the Civil War.

The other choices do not accurately capture the key implications of the Kansas-Nebraska Act; it did not ban slavery or effectively end it in the territories, nor did it merely repeal the Missouri Compromise without further consequences. Instead, it fundamentally transformed how the question of slavery in new territories would be addressed.