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the doctrine of allowing the people in a territory to decide whether or not to allow slavery in their area is referred to as this:

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Final answer:

The practice of allowing residents of territories to decide on the legality of slavery was known as popular sovereignty, a significant issue in 19th-century America as it expanded westward.

Step-by-step explanation:

The doctrine of allowing the people in a territory to decide whether or not to allow slavery in their area is referred to as popular sovereignty. This principle was particularly significant during the 19th century as the United States grappled with the contentious issue of slavery's expansion into new territories. Popular sovereignty suggested that residents of a territory should have the right to decide by vote whether to allow slavery, aligning with the concept of majority rule. It gained prominence after the Mexican-American War when the U.S. acquired new territories, and was applied during the Missouri Compromise, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and became a focal point during the debates leading up to the Civil War.

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