Question

How did the split of the Democratic Party affect the outcome of the 1860 election and the Southern states’ decision to secede?

Answer 1

Hint: In the US elections of 1860, Abraham Lincoln had defeated two southern candidates and another candidate from the Democratic Union. The votes were very critically divided along the lines of the issue of slavery. These elections stood as a testimony to that ideological split.

Complete answer: The Southern states in America had been plantation intensive states. Therefore, the requirements there of slaves to work on these plantations was felt far more than the legitimacy of having slaves in the Northern states. This was the bone of contention, later turning out into the American Civil War and causing the secession of the Southern states.

Abraham Lincoln was clear on his stance of anti-slavery and stood firm against the racism which infested all Western states, particularly America. When Abraham Lincoln won the elections of 1860, it was clear that he would initiate policies for anti- slavery laws and abolish racism. This was seen as a threat to the Southern states.

Thus, led by South Carolina, the Southern states decided to secede from North America and keep their rights to hold slaves intact. This ideological spilt caused the American Civil War, leading to the division of the North and South America and the enforcement of anti-slavery rules in the North. This is not to say that racism ended in North America directly after Lincoln was elected President but the first steps were taken in this direction.

Note: The Confederate states flag which became so controversial for its presence while storming of the Capitol in January 2021 is the flag used during the American Civil War as a symbol to white supremacy ideals held by the Southern states.