On this day, November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln, has officially been elected as the 16th president of the United States, winning over 180 electoral votes! This entire election process, however, has definitely been heated with controversy. Since the Dred Scott decision of 1857, legal debate over slavery remains contentious…
First, in order to fully understand the importance of this election, the significance of this judicial case must be explained. In 1846, Dred Scott, the slave of a military doctor who regularly travelled, was taken to numerous free states, such as Illinois and Wisconsin, with his master. He argued that he should be free, as he briefly resided in “free” territory. The American people followed the judicial turnover of this case for years (eleven to be exact) and the Supreme Court has finally come to a decision. The justices ruled that Scott was still a slave and did not have the right to a court hearing at all, as he was not a US Citizen and had no right to. Unbelievable, right?! As a result, this outcome split the Democratic party in three groups for the election: the Northerners, Southerners, and “moderate” Southerners. Each representative candidate took very different stance on the topics of states’ powers and slavery in hopes of pleasing certain regions of the nation (which, if I might add, was definitely NOT a winning strategy).
Running for the “Southern” portion of the Democratic party was John C. Breckinridge. The tweet above essentially sums up his campaign platform (hint: he is pro-slavery). While he wanted to protect the “property” of slave-owners, he also wanted to maintain the entirety of the Union.
This guy, Stephen A. Douglas, actually beat Lincoln in a previous election (crazy, right?!). While he was the frontrunner Democratic nominee for the longest stretch, he lost his support due to his anti-slavery stance (so he only retained “Northern” votes).
Finally, John Bell, who represented the moderate Southerners, was most concerned with keeping the Union intact. He didn’t even receive enough votes for me to feature a tweet of his (#sorrynotsorry).
While his victory could be attributed to the Democratic Party’s disorganization, Lincoln’s campaign platform and morals have ultimately proven to be more popular. He appealed to both the inner-city manufacturing workers and the rural farmers with his economic program, which promises to increase tariffs and reward those who cultivated land with cash incentives. Lincoln also opposes slavery. He is against the expansion of the institution, as it seems to personally violate his morale code. This resonated with younger voters, who are more open to change. In the aftermath of the election, however, his stance has riled up southern states. There are newly spread rumors of states’ potential secession from the nation.
Slave owners, of course, fuel this proposition. Remaining part of the Union risks their financial stability, as slaves may be freed. So, my fellow Americans, I beg you to side with Lincoln, as Southern culture cannot prevail. It is unmoral! Unjust! Unfair! This nation was founded on equality and fresh starts—do not let this upset lead to the collapse of these ideals!
Citations:
Information:
politico.com/story/2018/03/06/supreme-court-decides-dred-scott-case-march-6-1857-435658
https://www.britannica.com/event/United-States-presidential-election-of-1860
https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/election-of-1860
http://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/journal/2010/10/18/why-lincoln-won-1860/
Images:
https://www.neh.gov/humanities/2011/novemberdecember/feature/the-man-who-came-in-second
https://www.nps.gov/people/stephen-a-douglas.htm
https://www.historynet.com/the-9-greatest-supreme-court-justices.htm
https://simitator.com/generator/twitter/tweet
