How many states were involved in creating the issue for the election?

• A. Three
• B. Two
• C. Four
• D. Five

Answer: (A)

The main idea is recognizing how elections during Reconstruction were shaped by disputes in a few Southern states over how the Union would be restored and how civil rights would be protected. In this item, three states were the ones actively shaping that issue—each pushing different approaches to readmission and to rights for freedpeople. Those three states together set the political stage for the election, so the number involved is three. The other options would imply involvement by more or fewer states than the scenario describes, which doesn’t fit the context here.