Within one year of the ratification of this amendment, every citizen of the United States shall be the citizen of a State.<\/i><\/p>\n
A simple majority vote in Congress and among the citizens of Washington, D.C. or any territory is sufficient to create a new state. The new design of the Senate ensures that even tiny states will not have disproportionately large representation in the Senate.<\/p>\n
Other options are possible. D.C. could be incorporated into Maryland. If Congress or a majority of the citizens of a territory vote against statehood, independence must ensue.<\/p>\n
Independence, statehood, and incorporation into an existing state are all compliant with the proposition that all people are created equal.<\/p>\n
It must be acknowledged that if tiny territories become states, they would be overrepresented in the House. Gerrymandering<\/a> in the House is also a problem. Some advocate increasing<\/a> the size of the House, and some advocate multi-member districts<\/a> for the House. These are interrelated, complicated, lesser issues that we can later address under the simple majoritarian amendment power.<\/p>\n