Election of 1860

            The Civil War became inevitable with the election of Abraham Lincoln during the 1860 presidential election. Due to Lincoln's victory, South Carolina secede from the nation. As South Carolina seceded, other southern states began to secede. The secession of southern states lead to an alliance called the Confederate States of America. The Election of 1860 was the point in American history when the Civil War became inevitable.
             The election of 1860 was between Abraham Lincoln, Stephen A. Douglas, and John C. Breckenridge. The Republicans" success in the elections was largely due to their stand on slavery issues that were facing the nation. They opposed the expansion of slavery and called upon Congress to make sure that it didn't expand further then where it was. The party itself was generally a more anti-slavery party. Most other republicans rejected a move or a radical stand that would associate them more with abolitionists. Lincoln, who was more conservative then most of the other republicans in his party, stated that he was against equal rights in voting and office holding of women. Republicans viewed Slavery as an aggressive institution. In May of 1860, the Republicans met in Chicago at the Republican National Convention where they selected Abraham Lincoln to be their representative for President. The platform that the Republicans ran on endorsed measures to encourage industry, a homestead act, and a trans continental railroad for the Election of 1860.
             The Democratic Party was united behind the document of Popular Sovereignty. There were two candidates for the Democratic Party was Stephen A. Douglas from the north and John C. Breckenridge from the South. Popular Sovereignty promised to keep the issues of slavery out of the hands of the politicians in Washington and the people of the states should decide whether or not they want the state to be a free state or a slave state.