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First Critical Election Dbq

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The First “Critical” Election

The election of 1860 was a very important moment of the United States history. There were four candidates, Constitutional Union candidate John Bell, the Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, the Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge, and Republican Abraham Lincoln. During this election, different views of slavery are what caused the Democrats to electorally split into North and South. This split is why the 1860 election is considered by most political observers to be the first “critical” election.This election caused sharp and enduring changes in our country’s views on slavery and politics.

Many important events before the election caused the country to have different views about slavery. The north believed that slavery …show more content…

His views on slavery moved more towards stopping slavery expansion. He joined the Republican party in 1856. In 1857, the Supreme Court announced its questionable decision Scott v. Stanford, declaring African Americans were not citizens and had no inherent rights. Although, Abraham Lincoln did believe that African Americans were not equal to whites,but he did believe that America’s founders intended for all men to be created with inalienable rights. Abraham Lincoln was ready to change the people’s views of African Americans.

Lincoln’s new found political passion helped him decide to challenge Stephen A. Douglas in a race to be senator. He criticized Douglas, President Buchanan for supporting slavery, and the Supreme Court in his nomination acceptance speech. Lincoln also, stated “a house divided cannot stand.” This is saying the union needed to work together to accomplish bringing it back together. Abraham Lincoln awoke the people’s interest in slavery and other important political …show more content…

It turned out to be a very interesting election. Lincoln was not even on the ballot in the South, but he won both the electoral and popular vote. The Democrats would have won the popular vote if they had not been divided. Lincoln and the Republican party had won the election.

Lincoln did many great things throughout his presidency, which is why this was a critical election. After Lincoln was elected, the South began to separate from the union. This produced the Civil War. Lincoln also is considered to be our best president. This is precisely because how he approached the war, the Gettysburg Address, and the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln did a magnificent job being a president.

This was a very interesting and fun topic to write about. I picked this topic because I am inspired by Abraham Lincoln and his job as a president. I felt very excited to do the research because I wanted to learn more about this election and Lincoln. I learned that Abraham Lincoln applied for senator before he became a president. I think the long term influence that my historical topic had on the United States was slavery was stopped and our country was united again. I loved to write and learn more about this

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