Under the Articles of Confederation, how many votes did each state have in the unicameral Congress?

• A. One vote per state
• B. Two votes per state
• C. Proportional representation by population
• D. States had no vote

Answer: (A)

The voting setup in the Articles of Confederation is about equal representation for the states in the national legislature. In the unicameral Congress, each state had one vote, regardless of its population or size. This meant that smaller states had the same influence as larger ones, reflecting a design that prioritized state sovereignty and equality among states over population-based power.

Because there was only one chamber and each state cast a single vote, decisions required broad consensus among states (for example, nine of the thirteen to pass ordinary laws) and changes to the Articles themselves needed all thirteen states’ approval. This structure helped keep the national government weak and tightly linked to the states it represented, a deliberate contrast to later systems that used proportional representation for larger populations.