Which principle describes the division of government responsibilities among legislative, executive, and judicial branches?

• A. Separation of Powers
• B. Checks and Balances
• C. Federalism
• D. Individual Rights

Answer: (A)

Dividing government duties among legislative, executive, and judicial branches distributes power so no single part of government handles everything. The legislative branch creates laws, the executive branch enforces them, and the judicial branch interprets laws and settles disputes. This separation helps prevent one group from gaining too much control and protects individual freedoms by providing different layers that can check each other.

Checks and balances is related, describing how those branches monitor and limit one another, but the idea here is the division of responsibilities itself. Federalism deals with power shared between national and state governments, and individual rights are protections for people, not how government duties are split.