In an effort to gain Southern support, Senator Stephen A. Douglas of holding would be determined by Illinois proposed that the Nebraska territory be split Into two territories (Kansas and The winner of the 1856 presidential election A Supreme Court decision Legislative compromise Popular sovereignty

Popular sovereignty.<br /><br />The concept Douglas proposed was known as **popular sovereignty**, which held that the residents of each territory should decide for themselves, through a vote, whether to allow slavery. This was a departure from the Missouri Compromise, which had previously dictated the legality of slavery in new territories. Douglas hoped this compromise would appease both pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions, but it ultimately inflamed tensions and contributed to the violence known as "Bleeding Kansas."<br />