Territory

in American history, a term applied to certain sections of the national domain having an organized government but not admitted to the Union. The affairs of a territory are administered by a governor, by judges, a marshal, and other officers appointed by the president with the approval of the Senate. Local affairs, including territorial revenue, are managed by the territorial legislature, quite as in a state. A territory is entitled to send a delegate to Congress who has a voice in the consideration of territorial matters but no vote. Territories are formed by special act of Congress. Whenever a territory has sufficient population to entitle it to national representation, Congress may admit it to the Union, provided always that political questions do not present too great an obstacle. The party in power is very reluctant to admit a territory to statehood if the new state is likely to send a delegation to Congress of an opposite political faith. This difficulty has been gotten around in the past by admitting the territories in pairs. With the exception of the original thirteen states, nearly all of the states have passed through the territorial stage. Since the admission of Arizona and New Mexico into the sisterhood of states in 1910, Alaska and Hawaii are the only two organized territories of the United States.