The idea of distributing national power among three branches to prevent tyranny is known as what?

• A. Checks and balances
• B. Federalism
• C. Popular sovereignty
• D. Separation of powers

Answer: (D)

Separation of powers is the idea of distributing national power among three branches to prevent tyranny. By assigning distinct duties to legislative, executive, and judicial branches and giving them ways to check one another, this structure keeps any single part of government from gaining too much control. For example, laws are made by Congress, carried out by the president, and interpreted by the courts; each branch has tools to limit the others, such as vetoes, overrides, and judicial review. This design creates layered protections against the abuse of power. Related concepts like checks and balances describe how those protections operate, while federalism deals with power between national and state governments, and popular sovereignty refers to the people as the source of governmental authority. The term that best captures distributing power among three branches is separation of powers.