The Great Debate: Lincoln Vs. Douglas
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates were a series of 7 debates between Abraham Lincoln, the republican candidate and Stephen Douglas in 1858 that took place for the Place of the Senator of Illinois. Both candidates were trying to get their parties to win control of the Illinois legislature because then, the senators were elected by state legislatures. Although Lincoln did not win, it proved he could compete with the well known Douglas, which would boost his national profile and popularity; this would lead up to his victory in the election of 1860.
The South at first supported Douglas because he would make more land available for slavery through popular sovereignty but then he truned his back on the Dred Scott decision which was pro slavery. He did this by issuing the Freeport Doctrine which stated that slavery should be banned if the people vote so regardless of how the Supreme Court rules. Douglas had won the battle, but lost the war. He was elected Senator of Illinois, but it cost him his inital goal - winning the presidential election of 1860. The Freeport Doctrine lost Southern support for Douglas which resulted in the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, which enraged the south and cause them to secede from the Union to for the Confederacy even before Lincolns inauguration. Not a single Southern state had voted for Lincoln, yet he still won; the South saw this as how the North was taking over politics and soon would try to abolish slavery once and for all. The forming of the Confederacy and their opposition to the Union (North) could only lead to one thing, The Civil War.
The main issue of the debates was slavery, more specifically, the expansion of slavery into new territories. Lincoln wanted to stop the expansion of slavery into the territories and Douglas wanted to let the people in the territorie decide whether to establish slavery there or not (popular soverighnty). As the Lincoln-Douglas Debates resulted in loss of Southern support for Douglas and this caused his defeat in the election of 1860; the sectionalism between the North and South over the issue of slavery had now been maxed, this would now lead to The Civil War because the South are unhappy with their new president who is against the expansion of slavery into the territories.
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates were a series of 7 debates between Abraham Lincoln, the republican candidate and Stephen Douglas in 1858 that took place for the Place of the Senator of Illinois. Both candidates were trying to get their parties to win control of the Illinois legislature because then, the senators were elected by state legislatures. Although Lincoln did not win, it proved he could compete with the well known Douglas, which would boost his national profile and popularity; this would lead up to his victory in the election of 1860.
The South at first supported Douglas because he would make more land available for slavery through popular sovereignty but then he truned his back on the Dred Scott decision which was pro slavery. He did this by issuing the Freeport Doctrine which stated that slavery should be banned if the people vote so regardless of how the Supreme Court rules. Douglas had won the battle, but lost the war. He was elected Senator of Illinois, but it cost him his inital goal - winning the presidential election of 1860. The Freeport Doctrine lost Southern support for Douglas which resulted in the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, which enraged the south and cause them to secede from the Union to for the Confederacy even before Lincolns inauguration. Not a single Southern state had voted for Lincoln, yet he still won; the South saw this as how the North was taking over politics and soon would try to abolish slavery once and for all. The forming of the Confederacy and their opposition to the Union (North) could only lead to one thing, The Civil War.
The main issue of the debates was slavery, more specifically, the expansion of slavery into new territories. Lincoln wanted to stop the expansion of slavery into the territories and Douglas wanted to let the people in the territorie decide whether to establish slavery there or not (popular soverighnty). As the Lincoln-Douglas Debates resulted in loss of Southern support for Douglas and this caused his defeat in the election of 1860; the sectionalism between the North and South over the issue of slavery had now been maxed, this would now lead to The Civil War because the South are unhappy with their new president who is against the expansion of slavery into the territories.