5.7 Election of 1860 and Secession

A Fractured Party System

The Election of 1860 featured a splintered field: Abraham Lincoln (Republican) opposed expansion of slavery; the Democratic Party split into Stephen Douglas (Northern Democrat, popular sovereignty) and John C. Breckinridge (Southern Democrat, pro-slavery expansion). John Bell ran for the Constitutional Union Party, urging compromise. Lincoln won the presidency with only Northern electoral votes, alarming the South.

Secession Begins

Fearing Lincoln would restrict and eventually abolish slavery, South Carolina seceded first in December 1860, followed by six more Deep South states, forming the Confederate States of America under Jefferson Davis. Southerners invoked states' rights and self-determination, though protecting slavery was the central cause, as stated explicitly in secession declarations.

Failed Compromises and Fort Sumter

Attempts like the Crittenden Compromise tried to extend the Missouri Compromise line but failed to satisfy Republicans or secessionists. After Lincoln's inauguration, the crisis climaxed at Fort Sumter (April 1861), where Confederate forces fired on federal troops, igniting the Civil War and prompting four more Upper South states to secede.

Key terms

Abraham Lincoln (1860)

Republican candidate opposed to slavery's expansion; won the presidency with only Northern electoral votes.

Democratic Party split (1860)

Divided into Stephen Douglas (Northern, popular sovereignty) and John C. Breckinridge (Southern, pro-slavery expansion).

Crittenden Compromise

Failed 1860 proposal to extend the Missouri Compromise line westward to prevent secession.

Fort Sumter

Federal fort in South Carolina; Confederate attack in April 1861 started the Civil War.

Confederate States of America

Government formed by seceding Southern states, led by President Jefferson Davis, to protect slavery and assert states' rights.

Try an AP-style question

Lincoln won the 1860 election with support mainly from…

1. border states only
2. Northern states
3. Southern states
4. every region equally