lincoln douglas debate Flashcards
(9 cards)
Divide between democrats in the 1858 mid-term elections
The Democrats were divided because Stephen Douglas and his Northern supporters disagreed with President Buchanan and his majority Southern Cohort due to their acceptance of the Lecompton Constitution.
Buchanan also contributed to sectional tension by using his power of patronage to remove all of Douglas’ supporters from office.
Northern Democrats (Douglas) valued popular sovereignty over party unity, and this caused many Southern Democrats to label Douglas as a traitor.
importance of illinois
Douglas had to stand for re-election as Senator for Illinois in 1858. His biggest threat as candidate was Abraham Lincoln.
Illinois (North) was thought to be particularly important because it was the 4th largest state in the Union and despite it usually voting Democrat, Northern resentment to Buchanan and his party meant that Republicans had a chance of winning it. It is also thought that the Illinois vote would determine the outcome of the 1860 Presidential election
Lincolns views
Lincoln opposed slavery as he believed that it went against the Declaration of Independence that “all men are equal”. Despite this, he was prepared to tolerate it and was often critical of abolitionists. He also had shown no personal hatred to slaveholders as he was married to one.
In his acceptance speech to the Republican State convention on 16th June 1858, he made it clear that he supported the “ultimate extinction” of slavery, which set the precedence of the Lincoln-Douglas debate. Lincoln was determined to identify Douglas with the slave power conspiracy.
When Lincoln said, “a house divided against itself cannot stand”, he meant that the Union would not be able to survive if the sectional crisis still stood.
why were the stakes so high for the lincoln douglas debate?
The stakes were high for this debate as it was about slavery. Both men were also powerful and inspiration speakers who each gained mass support. Their debate captured public opinion and discussed only the three topics of race, slavery and slave expansion. Despite this, newspaper reports of it were often distorted so what was said remains a mystery.
Lincolns views in the debate
Lincoln
Was against the institution of slavery, however still believed that black people were not equal to whites. “I am not, nor ever have been in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and the black races”, said Lincoln in their 4th debate in 1858. Douglas played the race card arguing the Lincoln wasn’t fully against the abolition of slavery because he saw black people as inferior to whites.
Lincoln said “the real issue in this controversy… is the sentiment on the part of one class that looks upon the institution of slavery as wrong, and another class that does not look upon it as wrong.
Douglas’ views in the debate
Made it clear that he believed black people to be inferior to whites.
Wasn’t against the institution of slavery.
Lincoln raised the specter of the salve power conspiracy as the Dred Scott decision showed that the Supreme Court intended to make slavery legitimate, this angered Douglass.
Results of the debate
Republicans and Democrats won around the same amount of votes, with Republicans winning 125 000 and Democrats winning 121 000.
However, the Democrats were able to stay in control of Illinois State Legislature and Douglass was re-elected as Senator. It was a great win for him as he had outcompeted both Buchanan and the Republicans, showing that he was the strongest candidate for the 1860 Presidential election.
How Douglas alienated Southerners during the debate
Douglas had alienated Southerners in his debate by invalidating the Dred Scott decision through his Freeport Doctrine, which said that voters of a territory could exclude slavery by refusing to make laws which gave legal protection to slave property. He lost support from the South.
McPherson argues that “for Lincoln, the election was a victory in defeat” because he had become Republican spokesman on a national status following the Illinois senatorial debate.
how the debate had a positive impact on Republicans
1858 congressional elections were worrying for the Democrats because despite Douglass winning, the election was a failure from Buchanans party. Their representation in the House of Representative fell from 53 to 32, meaning that the Republicans controlled it. Republicans had gained a lot of support in the lead up to the 1860 presidential election due to Dred Scott, Lecompton constitution, the economic depression, failure of the American Party etc.
