The United States of America is a federal republic[1] consisting of 50 states, a federal district (Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States), five major territories, and minor islands.[2][3] Both the states and the United States as a whole are each sovereign jurisdictions.[4] The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution allows states to exercise all powers of government not delegated to the federal government. Each state has its own constitution and government. All states and their residents are represented in the federal Congress, a bicameral legislature consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each state elects two senators, while representatives are distributed among the states in proportion to the most recent constitutionally mandated decennial census.[5]

Each state is entitled to select a number of electors to vote in the Electoral College, the body that elects the nation's president and vice president, equal to the total of representatives and senators in Congress from that state.[6] The federal district does not have representatives in the Senate, but has a non-voting delegate in the House, and it is entitled to electors in the Electoral College. Congress can admit more states, but it cannot create a new state from territory of an existing state or merge two or more states into one without the consent of all states involved. Each new state is admitted on an equal footing with the existing states.[7]

The United States possesses fourteen territories. Five of them (American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands) have a permanent, non-military population, while nine of them (the United States Minor Outlying Islands) do not. With the exception of Navassa Island, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, which are located in the Caribbean, all territories are located in the Pacific Ocean. One territory, Palmyra Atoll, is considered to be incorporated, meaning the full body of the Constitution has been applied to it. The other territories are unincorporated, meaning the Constitution does not fully apply to them. Ten territories (the Minor Outlying Islands and American Samoa) are considered to be unorganized, meaning they have not had an organic act enacted by Congress. The four other territories are organized, meaning an organic act has been enacted by Congress. The five inhabited territories each have limited autonomy and territorial legislatures and governors. Residents cannot vote in federal elections, although all are represented by non-voting delegates in the House.

The largest state by population is California, with a population of 39,538,223 people. The smallest is Wyoming, with a population of 576,851 people. The federal district has a larger population (689,545) than both Wyoming and Vermont. The largest state by area is Alaska, encompassing 665,384 square miles (1,723,340 km2). The smallest is Rhode Island, encompassing 1,545 square miles (4,000 km2). The most recent states to be admitted, Alaska and Hawaii, were admitted in 1959. The largest territory by population is Puerto Rico, with a population of 3,285,874 people, larger than 21 states. The smallest is the Northern Mariana Islands, with a population of 47,329 people. Puerto Rico is the largest territory by area, encompassing 5,325 square miles (13,790 km2). The smallest territory, Kingman Reef, encompasses 0.005 square miles (0.013 km2), or a little larger than 3 acres.

States

States of the United States of America
Flag, name and
postal abbreviation[8] 		Cities Ratification or
admission[A] 		Population
(2020)[10] 		Total area[11] Reps.
Capital Largest[12] mi2 km2
 Alabama AL Montgomery Huntsville Dec 14, 1819 5,024,279 52,420 135,767 7
 Alaska AK Juneau Anchorage Jan 3, 1959 733,391 665,384 1,723,337 1
 Arizona AZ Phoenix Feb 14, 1912 7,151,502 113,990 295,234 9
 Arkansas AR Little Rock Jun 15, 1836 3,011,524 53,179 137,732 4
 California CA Sacramento Los Angeles Sep 9, 1850 39,538,223 163,695 423,967 52
 Colorado CO Denver Aug 1, 1876 5,773,714 104,094 269,601 8
 Connecticut CT Hartford Bridgeport Jan 9, 1788 3,605,944 5,543 14,357 5
 Delaware DE Dover Wilmington Dec 7, 1787 989,948 2,489 6,446 1
 Florida FL Tallahassee Jacksonville Mar 3, 1845 21,538,187 65,758 170,312 28
 Georgia GA Atlanta Jan 2, 1788 10,711,908 59,425 153,910 14
 Hawaii HI Honolulu Aug 21, 1959 1,455,271 10,932 28,313 2
 Idaho ID Boise Jul 3, 1890 1,839,106 83,569 216,443 2
 Illinois IL Springfield Chicago Dec 3, 1818 12,812,508 57,914 149,995 17
 Indiana IN Indianapolis Dec 11, 1816 6,785,528 36,420 94,326 9
 Iowa IA Des Moines Dec 28, 1846 3,190,369 56,273 145,746 4
 Kansas KS Topeka Wichita Jan 29, 1861 2,937,880 82,278 213,100 4
 Kentucky[B] KY Frankfort Louisville Jun 1, 1792 4,505,836 40,408 104,656 6
 Louisiana LA Baton Rouge New Orleans Apr 30, 1812 4,657,757 52,378 135,659 6
 Maine ME Augusta Portland Mar 15, 1820 1,362,359 35,380 91,633 2
 Maryland MD Annapolis Baltimore Apr 28, 1788 6,177,224 12,406 32,131 8
 Massachusetts[B] MA Boston Feb 6, 1788 7,029,917 10,554 27,336 9
 Michigan MI Lansing Detroit Jan 26, 1837 10,077,331 96,714 250,487 13
 Minnesota MN Saint Paul Minneapolis May 11, 1858 5,706,494 86,936 225,163 8
 Mississippi MS Jackson Dec 10, 1817 2,961,279 48,432 125,438 4
 Missouri MO Jefferson City Kansas City Aug 10, 1821 6,154,913 69,707 180,540 8
 Montana MT Helena Billings Nov 8, 1889 1,084,225 147,040 380,831 2
 Nebraska NE Lincoln Omaha Mar 1, 1867 1,961,504 77,348 200,330 3
 Nevada NV Carson City Las Vegas Oct 31, 1864 3,104,614 110,572 286,380 4
 New Hampshire NH Concord Manchester Jun 21, 1788 1,377,529 9,349 24,214 2
 New Jersey NJ Trenton Newark Dec 18, 1787 9,288,994 8,723 22,591 12
 New Mexico NM Santa Fe Albuquerque Jan 6, 1912 2,117,522 121,590 314,917 3
 New York NY Albany New York City Jul 26, 1788 20,201,249 54,555 141,297 26
 North Carolina NC Raleigh Charlotte Nov 21, 1789 10,439,388 53,819 139,391 14
 North Dakota ND Bismarck Fargo Nov 2, 1889 779,094 70,698 183,108 1
 Ohio OH Columbus Mar 1, 1803 11,799,448 44,826 116,098 15
 Oklahoma OK Oklahoma City Nov 16, 1907 3,959,353 69,899 181,037 5
 Oregon OR Salem Portland Feb 14, 1859 4,237,256 98,379 254,799 6
 Pennsylvania[B] PA Harrisburg Philadelphia Dec 12, 1787 13,002,700 46,054 119,280 17
 Rhode Island RI Providence May 29, 1790 1,097,379 1,545 4,001 2
 South Carolina SC Columbia Charleston May 23, 1788 5,118,425 32,020 82,933 7
 South Dakota SD Pierre Sioux Falls Nov 2, 1889 886,667 77,116 199,729 1
 Tennessee TN Nashville Jun 1, 1796 6,910,840 42,144 109,153 9
 Texas TX Austin Houston Dec 29, 1845 29,145,505 268,596 695,662 38
 Utah UT Salt Lake City Jan 4, 1896 3,271,616 84,897 219,882 4
 Vermont VT Montpelier Burlington Mar 4, 1791 643,077 9,616 24,906 1
 Virginia[B] VA Richmond Virginia Beach Jun 25, 1788 8,631,393 42,775 110,787 11
 Washington WA Olympia Seattle Nov 11, 1889 7,705,281 71,298 184,661 10
 West Virginia WV Charleston Jun 20, 1863 1,793,716 24,230 62,756 2
 Wisconsin WI Madison Milwaukee May 29, 1848 5,893,718 65,496 169,635 8
 Wyoming WY Cheyenne Jul 10, 1890 576,851 97,813 253,335 1

Federal district

Federal district of the United States
Flag, name and
postal abbreviation[8]		 Established Population (2020)
[10] 		Total area[11] Reps.
mi2 km2
District of Columbia DC Jul 16, 1790[13] 689,545 68 176 1[C]

Territories

Inhabited territories

Inhabited territories of the United States
Name and
postal abbreviation[8]		 Capital Acquired
[15] 		Territorial status[16] Population (2020)
[10][17] 		Total area[11] Reps.
mi2 km2
 American Samoa AS Pago Pago[18] 1900 Unincorporated, unorganized[D] 49,710 581 1,505 1[C]
 Guam GU Hagåtña[20] 1899 Unincorporated, organized 153,836 571 1,478 1[C]
 Northern Mariana Islands MP Saipan[21] 1986 Unincorporated, organized[E] 47,329 1,976 5,117 1[C]
 Puerto Rico PR San Juan[22] 1899 Unincorporated, organized[E] 3,285,874 5,325 13,791 1[F]
 U.S. Virgin Islands VI Charlotte Amalie[23] 1917 Unincorporated, organized 87,146 733 1,898 1[C]

Uninhabited territories

Territories of the United States with no permanent population
Name Acquired[15] Territorial status[16] Land area[G]
mi2 km2
Baker Island[24] 1856 Unincorporated; unorganized 0.9 2.2
Howland Island[24] 1858 Unincorporated, unorganized 0.6 1.6
Jarvis Island[25] 1856 Unincorporated, unorganized 2.2 5.7
Johnston Atoll[26] 1859 Unincorporated, unorganized 1 2.6
Kingman Reef[27] 1860 Unincorporated, unorganized 0.005 0.01
Midway Atoll[H][29] 1867 Unincorporated, unorganized 3 7.8
Navassa Island[30] 1858[I] Unincorporated, unorganized
Also claimed by Haiti		 3 7.8
Palmyra Atoll[J][32] 1898 Incorporated, unorganized 1.5 3.9
Wake Island[K][33] 1899[L] Unincorporated, unorganized
Also claimed by Marshall Islands		 2.5 6.5

Disputed territories

Territories claimed but not administered by the United States
Name Claimed
[15] 		Territorial status[35] Area Administered by[35] Also claimed by[35]
mi2 km2
Bajo Nuevo Bank (Petrel Island)[15] 1869 Unincorporated, unorganized
(disputed sovereignty) 		56 145[M][36] Colombia Jamaica
Nicaragua
Serranilla Bank[15] 1880 Unincorporated, unorganized
(disputed sovereignty) 		463 1,200[N][37] Colombia Honduras
Nicaragua

See also

Explanatory notes

  1. The original 13 states became sovereign in July 1776 upon agreeing to the United States Declaration of Independence, and each joined the first Union of states between 1777 and 1781, upon ratifying the Articles of Confederation.[9] These states are presented in the order in which each ratified the 1787 Constitution, thus joining the present federal Union of states. Subsequent states are listed in the order of their admission to the Union, and the date given is the official establishment date set by Act of Congress. For further details, see List of U.S. states by date of admission to the Union
  2. Uses the term commonwealth rather than state in its full official name
  3. Represented by a non-voting delegate in the House of Representatives.[14]
  4. Although not organized through a federal organic act or other explicit Congressional directive on governance, the people of American Samoa adopted a constitution in 1967, and then in 1977, elected territorial officials for the first time.[19]
  5. Organized as a commonwealth.
  6. Represented by a non-voting resident commissioner in the House of Representatives.[14]
  7. Excluding lagoon
  8. Although there are no indigenous inhabitants, around 40 United States Fish and Wildlife Service staff and service contractors live on the island at any given time.[28]
  9. U.S. sovereignty is disputed by Haiti.[31]
  10. Although there are no indigenous inhabitants, between 4 and 20 Nature Conservancy, employees, United States Fish and Wildlife Service staff, and researchers live on the island at any given time.[28]
  11. Although there are no indigenous inhabitants, as of 2009, around 150 U.S. 150 U.S. military personnel and civilian contractors were living on the island, staffing the Wake Island Airfield and communications facilities.[33]
  12. U.S. sovereignty is disputed by the Republic of Marshall Islands.[34]
  13. This is the approximate figure for the land area of the bank, and does not include the surrounding territorial waters.
  14. This figure includes the total land area of the Serranilla Bank and the water area of its lagoon, but not the surrounding territorial waters.

References

  1. Onuf, Peter S. (1983). The Origins of the Federal Republic: Jurisdictional Controversies in the United States, 1775–1787. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0-8122-1167-2.
  2. "Common Core Document of the United States of America: Submitted With the Fourth Periodic Report of the United States of America to the United Nations Committee on Human Rights concerning the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights". U.S. Department of State, via The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs.
  3. "U.S. Insular Areas: application of the U.S. Constitution" (PDF). Government Accountability Office. November 1997. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 3, 2013.
  4. Radan, 2007, p. 12
  5. Burnett, Kristin D. "Congressional Apportionment (2010 Census Briefs C2010BR-08)" (PDF). U.S. Department of Commerce, Economics and Statistics Administration. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 19, 2011.
  6. Elhauge, Einer R. "Essays on Article II: Presidential Electors". The Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original on July 24, 2017.
  7. "Doctrine of the Equality of States". Justia Law. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012.
  8. "Appendix B: Two–Letter State and possession Abbreviations". Postal Addressing Standards. Washington, D.C.: United States Postal Service. May 2015. Archived from the original on March 5, 2018.
  9. Jensen, Merrill (1959). The Articles of Confederation: An Interpretation of the Social-Constitutional History of the American Revolution, 1774–1781. University of Wisconsin Press. pp. xi, 184. ISBN 978-0-299-00204-6. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  10. "Resident Population for the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico: 2020 Census" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 7, 2023.
  11. "State Area Measurements and Internal Point Coordinates". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 16, 2018. ... provides land, water and total area measurements for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Island Areas. The area measurements were derived from the Census Bureau's Master Address File/Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER®) database. The boundaries of the states and equivalent areas are as of January 1, 2010. The land and water areas, ... reflect base feature updates made in the MAF/TIGER® database through August, 2010.
  12. Click on the spreadsheet link labeled "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places of 20,000 or More" "City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2023". census.gov.
  13. "The History of Washington, DC". Destination DC. March 15, 2016. Archived from the original on March 6, 2018.
  14. "Directory of Representatives". Washington, D.C.: U.S. House of Representatives. Archived from the original on March 5, 2018.
  15. "Acquisition Process of Insular Areas". Office of Insular Affairs. Archived from the original on April 14, 2012.
  16. "Definitions of Insular Area Political Organizations". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior. June 12, 2015. Archived from the original on July 13, 2018.
  17. 2020 Population of U.S. Island Areas Just Under 339,000, U.S. Census Bureau, October 28, 2021.
  18. "American Samoa". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021.
  19. "Islands We Serve: American Samoa". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior. June 11, 2015. Archived from the original on March 9, 2018.
  20. "Guam". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021.
  21. "Northern Mariana Islands". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021.
  22. "Puerto Rico". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021.
  23. "Virgin Islands". The World Factbook. Archived from the original on January 13, 2021.
  24. "Baker Island". Office of Insular Affairs. Archived from the original on April 19, 2012.
  25. "Jarvis Island". Office of Insular Affairs. Archived from the original on February 7, 2012.
  26. "Johnston Island". Office of Insular Affairs. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012.
  27. "Kingman Reef National Wildlife Refuge". United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Archived from the original on May 16, 2013.
  28. "United States Pacific Islands Wildlife Refuges". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021.
  29. "Midway Atoll". Office of Insular Affairs. Archived from the original on February 4, 2012.
  30. "Navassa Island". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior. June 12, 2015. Archived from the original on August 15, 2016.
  31. Colon, Yves (September 25, 1998). "U.S., Haiti Squabble Over Control of Tiny Island". Miami Herald. Webster University. Archived from the original on August 30, 2016.
  32. "Palmyra Atoll". Office of Insular Affairs. Archived from the original on January 11, 2012.
  33. "Wake Island". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021.
  34. Earnshaw, Karen (December 17, 2016). "Enen Kio (a.k.a. Wake Island): Island of the kio flower". Marshall Islands Guide. Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Archived from the original on April 1, 2018.
  35. Lewis, Martin W. (March 21, 2011). "When Is an Island Not An Island? Caribbean Maritime Disputes". GeoCurrents. Archived from the original on April 22, 2017.
  36. "US Minor Outlying Islands – Bajo Nuevo Bank". Geocaching. June 6, 2017. Archived from the original on July 11, 2015.
  37. "Cayo Serranilla" (in Spanish). Eco Fiwi. Archived from the original on July 31, 2017.
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