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Eagleton
Digital Archive of American Politics
1860
Election of Abraham Lincoln as President
Civil
War 1861-62
Civil
War 1863-65
| The
Currier & Ives print below depicts the 1860 election, highlighting
the split in the Democratic Party over its platform and the division
of Democratic votes between the competing tickets headed respectively
by Stephen A. Douglas and John C. Breckinridge, leading to the election
of the Republican slate of Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin. For
additional cartoons from the 1860 campaign, see Cartoons
of Lincoln's First Campaign, BoondocksNet Editions. |
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| As
the 1860 presidential election approached, the Democratic Party
was sharply divided. When the
Democratic National Convention convened in Charleston on April
23 through May 3, the leading candidates for the nomnation were
Vice President John
C. Breckinridge of Kentucky and Senator Stephen
A. Douglas of Illinois.
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Breckinridge, who would later serve as a Confederate general
and Secretary of War in the cabinet of Jefferson Davis and
was backed by outgoing President James Buchanan, supported
the Southern-dominated platform committee's insistence on
a plank promising congressional protection of slave property.
John
C.Breckinridge, Image Source: Library
of Congress |
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Douglas, during
his famous debates
with Abraham Lincoln in his successful 1858 re-election campaign
for his third Senate term, had been forced by Lincoln into articulating
his so-called "Freeport
Doctrine" (named after the site of the second
of the seven Lincoln-Douglas debates)
in which he took the position that territories
| 
Stephen
A. Douglas ImageSource: Library
of Congress |
and states applying for admittance to the union could either
allow or prohibit slavery by popular will and that Congress
had no legislative authority to either allow slavery or exclude
it. The position, which Douglas also had championed in the
Senate in the course of drafting the regional compromises
incorporated in the Missouri
Compromise and Kansas-Nebraska
Act, helped Douglas win the 1858 Senate election in Illinois,
but alienated Southern Democrats that he needed to gain the
presidential nomination in 1860.
The conflict
within the party deadlocked the Charleston convention as no
faction could gain a majority, with the southern delegates
ultimately walking out. The remaining delegates from the North
and West could not agree on Douglas or any other nominee,
and the convention was adjourned for six weeks. |
After the Democrats
adjourned without nominating their candidates, the Republicans convened
in Chicago
beginning on May 16. The early front-runner was New York's
U.S. Senator and former governor William
Henry Seward, but Seward's popularity within the Party was undermined
by concerns among its leaders over whether his strong abolitionist
stance, along with his past criticism of the anti-immigrant movement,
would alienate critical voters from border states and from former
members of the nativist American or "Know-Nothing
Party", which had received over a fifth of the popular
votes in the 1856 presidential election.
Although Lincoln
was still little-known outside Illinois, his position at the Chicago
convention was helped by the unity of the Illinois delegation behind
their favorite son and the boisterous enthusiasm of home-state supporters
inside the convention hall--demonstrations possibly orchestrated
by Lincoln's campaign manager, David
Davis, with the help of counterfeit admission tickets. Lincoln
also had backed tariffs and expanded government funding of roads
and other internal improvements, positions that garnered support
in manufacturing states like Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
While opposed
to slavery, Lincoln also had appeared to be somewhat less extreme
than Seward, making his potential candidacy attractive to those
leaders seeking a nominee who could win the November election.
On the first
ballot, Seward led with 173½ votes to 102 for Lincoln, but
was well short of the majority of 233 needed for nomination. When
Seward was unable to win as expected on the first ballot, he steadily
lost support as delegates previously pledged to other candidates
swung to Lincoln, who won the nomination on the third ballot with
364 of the 466 votes. |
Lincoln's
instructions to his secretary, William Nicolay, in July 1860,
at the commencement of the general election campaign
Image
Source: Abraham
Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress
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| Ascertain
what he wants-- |
| On
what subject he would converse with me-- |
| And
the particulars if he will give them-- |
| Is
an interview indispensable? |
| And
if so, how soon must it be had? |
| Tell
him my motto is "fairness to all"-- |
| But
commit me to nothing. |
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Meanwhile, the Democrats reconvened in Baltimore from June 18 to
23, six weeks after their failure to agree on nominees in Charleston.
Once more, however, the convention split over the Party's slavery
position. Ten delegations left the Party to organize a Constitutional
Democratic Convention and nominate Breckinridge, apparently with
the tacit approval of President Buchanan. The remaining delegations
at the Baltimore convention nominated Douglas, leaving the majority
party badly divided going into the fall campaign. See:
Official proceedings of the Democratic national convention, held
in 1860, at Charleston and Baltimore, University
of Michigan Library.
Douglas became
the first presidential candidate to depart from the historical precedent
that had kept candidates from campaigning personally on their own
behalf. Aided by the growing network of railroads, Douglas set a
model for future campaigns in an ultimately unsuccessful direct
appeal to take northern votes away from Lincoln and persuade southern
Democrats to return to the party.
The
Douglas campaign began with a stump tour of New York and
New England. Surprised by the strength of Lincoln and the
Republicans, Douglas next turned south to Norfolk, Raleigh,
and Richmond, urging his listeners not to follow the breakaway
Democrats out of the party fold. He moved through Pennsylvania
and New York, trying to lure voters away from Lincoln and
the Republicans. In Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin,
and Michigan, Douglas pressed the case for the preservation
of the Union. With time running out and secession still
threatening, Douglas returned to the South. [His wife] Adele
joined him as he moved through Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia.
Douglas received death threats. In Montgomery, he and Adele
were hit by eggs thrown at them, and at Selma the deck of
a steamboat gave way, severely bruising Senator and Mrs.
Douglas. Adele stayed behind to recover, but Douglas hobbled
on with a crutch, arriving in Mobile for his final stop
on the day before the election.
Source:
Stephen
A. Douglas and the American Union, University
of Chicago Library |
The competition
for votes was further fragmented by the newly-organized Constitutional
Union Party that supported compromise to maintain the Union
without advancing a specific agenda, which was made up largely of
former members of the Whig
and "Know-Nothing
parties . The Party chose former Senator John
Bell of Tennessee as their presidential nominee, over Governor
Sam Houston of Texas, Senator John Crittenden of Kentucky, and former
Representative John Botts of Virginia, all Southern moderates. Edward
Everett, former
Secretary of State and Massachusetts governor and senator, was named
as Bell’s vice-presidential running-mate.
Meanwhile, the
Southern Democrats backing Breckinridge attacked the Republicans
and Lincoln as threats to the Constitution and to the union, hoping
that the fear of secession and war might throw the election into
the House of Representatives, where the South had greater leverage.
Excerpts
from speech of Jefferson Davis in support of Breckinridge
before crowd in Washington, D.C., transcribed from the Washington
Evening Star, July 11, 1860.
Source:
The Papers
of Jefferson Davis, Volume 6, pp. 357-60 (Rice
University).
Then,
my friends, there is the "rail-splitter" [Lincoln],
aptly selected for the purpose, first proclaiming there
was an "irrepressible conflict" between the sections;
and having proved himself able to rend the yoke, who so
fit as he, with such a theory as that, to be selected for
the accursed performance of rending the Union? Then, my
friends, comes the true democracy, proclaiming the Constitution
and the Union, and what the Constitution is; writing your
opinions on your banner, throwing it to the winds, and inviting
all who believe to command worship at the altar of truth.
[Applause.] This banner proclaims the futility of Abe Lincoln's
efforts to rend the Union. Though he did rend the yoke,
he will find the Constitution and the Union worse than any
black gum in the forest.
Our
cause is onward. Our car is the Constitution; our fires
are up; let all who would ride into the haven of a peaceful
country come on board, and those who will not, I warn that
the cow-catcher is down--let stragglers beware! [Cheers.]
We have before us in this canvass the highest duty which
can prompt the devoted patriot. Our country is in danger.
Our Constitution is assailed by those who would escape from
declaring their opinions--by those who seek to torture its
meaning, and by those who would trample upon its obligations.
What is our Union? A bond of fraternity, by the mutual agreement
of sovereign States; it is to be preserved by good faith--by
strictly adhering to the obligations which exist between
its friendly and confederate States. Otherwise we should
transmit to our children the very evil under which our fathers
groaned--a government hostile to the rights of the people,
not resting upon their consent, trampling upon their privileges,
and calling for their resistance....
The
national democracy present a ticket to the country which
may well inspire the most lofty patriotism. The name of
Breckinridge comes down by lineal descent from one who asserted
the great principles of 1798, as reaffirmed at Baltimore;
and as for Lane, he is too modest to boast of the deeds
of his younger days. No doubt he has split a hundred rails
to Lincoln's one! [Laughter and cheers.] Let us then be
encouraged to go into the conflict, determined to succeed,
and transmit to our children the rich inheritance we have
received from our fathers unimpaired. [Applause.]
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While the Republican
ticket of Lincoln and Hamlin did not follow the Douglas pioneering
campaign model of the candidate making personal appearances and
speeches, it nonetheless aggressively employed surrogate speakers
and used other tools to generate public attention and support. The
Republican campaign also sought to broaden the debate beyond slavery,
emphasizing economic issues such as the tariff and internal improvements,
like a Pacific railroad, as well as criticizing incidents of corruption
in the outgoing Democratic administration of President Buchanan.
In addition
to the pioneering personal campaign waged by Douglas, the 1860 campaign
also also featured widespread use of photography, with images of
the respective candidates used in various campaign flyers and other
items intended to motivate voters.
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Republican
1860 campaign flag and medal.
Images
Source: Eds.
of American Heritage, An American Heritage Pictorial History
of the Presidents of the U.S., I, 1968, The
History Project, University of California at Davis
The
antebellum political system's participatory pageantry reached
its apex with the campaign of 1860. Close electoral competition
obliged the parties to rely upon high voter turnout to secure
elections. In an era before mass media politics, the parties
relied upon stump speakers and mass publications like campaign
song books to inspire partisan picnics, parades and rallies.
These events often provided the faithful with free food
and drink, served to whip up party fervor, and encouraged
voter turnout.
Republicans
marshalled their armies of electoral activists, many of
them young men organized into groups known as "Wide
Awakes." Clad in oilcloths and caps, the Wide Awakes
mounted a succession of torchlight parades which took Lincoln's
message to the streets. Here they often met up with Democratic
flying squadrons and other rivals.
Source:
The
Campaign of the Century, 1859-1861, by R.D. Monroe, Ph.D.
Lincoln/Net,
Abraham Lincoln Historical Digitization Project |
As election
day approached, it became clearer that the Republican base in the
northern states remained solid. Late attempts by the Democrats to
create "fusion" tickets with the Constitutional Union
party also failed to stem the Republican tide. The Lincoln-Hamlin
ticket received 39.9% of the popular vote to 29.5% for the Democrats,
winning in every northern state except New Jersey and also taking
California and Oregon. Breckinridge won 18.1% and most of the Southern
states; while Bell garnered 12.5% and carried three states—Kentucky,
Tennessee, and Virginia. The Democratic defeat was even more striking
in the Electoral College when Douglas was able to add only Missouri
to New Jersey, thus gaining a total of only 12 electoral votes compared
to the Republican tally of 180 electoral votes with 150 required
for election.
1860
Election Returns
| Candidate/Party |
Popular
vote |
Electoral
Vote |
%
Popular Vote |
| Lincoln
(Republican) |
1,864,735 |
180 |
39.9 |
| Douglas
(Democrat) |
979,425 |
12 |
29.5 |
| Breckinridge
(National Democrat) |
669,472 |
72 |
18.1 |
| Bell
(Constitutional Union) |
576,414 |
39 |
12.5 |
Following Lincoln's
election, activists
in South Carolina quickly moved to follow through on earler threats
to leave the Union, with its legislature authorizing a special convention
where delegates voted 160 to 0 for secession
on December 20, 1860. In January and February of 1861, Mississippi,
Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas also approved articles
of secession.
We, therefore, the People
of South Carolina, by our delegates in Convention assembled,
appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude
of our intentions, have solemnly declared that the Union
heretofore existing between this State and the other States
of North America, is dissolved, and that the State of South
Carolina has resumed her position among the nations of the
world, as a separate and independent State; with full power
to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish
commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent
States may of right do.
Declaration
of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession
of South Carolina from the Federal Union
Source:
The Avalon
Project, Yale Law School
|
Lincoln's own
efforts to avoid the dissolution of the Union were hampered by the
prolonged period then set by the Constitution between the November
election and the inauguration in the following March. The final
attempts to reach an accomodation with the South were focused on
the "Crittenden
Compromise", a proposed constitutional amendment introduced
in Congress in December 1860 by Senator John
J. Crittenden of Kentucky with support from the National Union
party. The amendment accepted the boundary between free and slave
states set by the Missouri Compromise of 1820, extended the line
to California, and assured the continuation of slavery where it
already existed. It also allowed slavery in the District of Columbia,
upheld the fugitive slave law with minor changes, and called for
suppression of the African slave trade. At a peace conference called
by the Virginia legislature in 1861, the compromise gained support
from four border state delegations. In the Congress, however, it
was defeated by votes of 113 to 80 in the House of Representatives
in January 1861 and in the Senate in March by 20 to 19. Its failure
marked the last attempt to avoid armeddconflict. |
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Resources
Lincoln/Net,
Abraham Lincoln Historical Digitization Project
Stephen
A. Douglas and the American Union >>
University of Chicago Library
The
Papers of Jefferson Davis >> Rice
University
The
Avalon Project, Yale Law School
Educational
Tools
Lesson
Plan: The Civil War >>Small
Planet Communications
Attitudes
toward Emancipation >> EDSITEment
Eve
of the Civil War: People and Places in the North and South >>
EDSITEment
Lincoln
Goes to War >> EDSITEment
Slavery
and Emancipation—E-Seminar 1, The Origins of Slavery in the
New World >> Columbia
American History Online
Next>
Civil
War Timeline 1861-62
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