Election of 1860 What happened? Summarize the
event!
The election of 1860 was a landmark event in American history that ultimately led to the outbreak of the American Civil War. The election featured four major candidates representing distinct regional factions and political parties.
The Democratic Party was split between Northern and Southern Democrats, with Northern Democrats supporting Stephen Douglas and Southern Democrats backing John C. Breckinridge. This division was largely due to the debate over slavery, where Northern Democrats believed in popular sovereignty while Southern Democrats supported the extension and protection of slavery.
The newly formed Republican Party nominated Abraham Lincoln, who opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories. While the Republican Party did not have a strong presence in the South, Lincoln's nomination and his party's stance on slavery deeply alarmed Southern slaveholders.
Lastly, John Bell of the Constitutional Union Party also ran as a compromiser, appealing to those who sought to preserve the Union without addressing the contentious issue of slavery.
The election campaign witnessed heated debates and intense regional rivalries. Abraham Lincoln won a majority of electoral votes, securing his victory, but only by winning the North and carrying not a single Southern state. As a result, Southern states began to fear that their economic, political, and social interests would be endangered under a Lincoln presidency.
Following Lincoln's election, tensions between the North and the South escalated rapidly, leading to the secession of several Southern states. The election of 1860 is considered a critical turning point in American history, as it highlighted the deep divisions over slavery within the nation and ultimately led to the outbreak of the Civil War.