• Never Admit Your Worst Fears: Honest Lincoln was able to win because he convinced people that the South would not secede under his leadership but would have to accept the implications of his nomination. Namely, Lincoln had called for the end to the expansion of slavery into western US territories like Kansas which had become a firestorm of violence. The Republicans didn’t even bother running a slate in most Southern states. The Democrats were positioning that Lincoln would destroy the US. In response, Lincoln promised that the South would never seperate from the union. Lincoln claimed that the South was trying to bargain for a better position. In truth, Lincoln had received many death threats. He was aware of the dangers of his being elected. He won with 39.9% of the vote over Douglas’ 29.5%. The vote split badly for the Democrats as they were not aligned with Southern interests. Ultimately, Lincoln came to Washington under a cloak for fear of being killed before inauguration. He hired a sizable garrison of federal troops to protect him. Most Republicans were surprised by the secession winter of 1860-1861. Some historians contend that he miscalculated the gravity of the crisis OR he knew that if he wasn’t elected then major societal change would not have been possible.
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