Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois and Abraham Lincoln, a Kentucky-born lawyer and one-time U.S. representative from Illinois, begin a series of famous public encounters on the issue of slavery. The two politicians, the former a Northern Democrat and the latter a Republican, were competing for Douglas’ U.S. Senate seat. In the seven Lincoln-Douglas debates–all about three hours along–Lincoln argued against the spread of slavery while Douglas maintained that each territory should have the right to decide whether it would become free or slave. Lincoln lost the Senate race, but his campaign brought national attention to the young Republican Party.
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In 1860, Lincoln won the Republican Party’s presidential nomination. In that election, he again faced Douglas, who represented the Northern faction of a heavily divided Democratic Party, as well as Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge and Constitutional Union candidate John Bell. On November 6, 1860, Lincoln defeated his opponents with only 40 percent of the popular vote, becoming the first Republican to win the presidency.
The announcement of his victory signaled the secession of the Southern states, which since the beginning of the year had been publicly threatening secession if the Republicans gained the White House. By the time of Lincoln’s inauguration on March 4, 1861, seven states had seceded and the Confederate States of America had been formally established with Jefferson Davis as its elected president. One month later, the American Civil War began when Confederate forces under General P.G.T. Beauregard opened fire on Union-held Fort Sumter in South Carolina.
“…Lincoln defeated them with only 40% of the vote.”
Probably the best example in American history of how 3rd parties can affect the outcome of an election.
Although the debates stretched into September 1858, one key excerpt from that month is withheld from U.S. public schools, as the aim is to portray Lincoln as a demigod whose morality, integrity, and wisdom are beyond contestation.
I will say then that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races — that I am not nor ever have been in favor of making voters or jurors of negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people; and I will say in addition to this that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality. And inasmuch as they cannot so live, while they do remain together there must be the position of superior and inferior, and I as much as any other man am in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race.
I’ve told this to a few of my Trump-hating/liberal-leaning FB contacts. They generally have no answer and ignore it outright.
I always found these debates odd because in 1858 the was no direct voting by the electorate in senate elections. That wouldn’t happen until the 17th Amendment was ratified in 1913. https://www.archives.gov/legislative/features/17th-amendment