Observance Daily What day is today, and why are we celebrating it?
On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th president of the United States. The election that saw Abraham Lincoln elected president was one of the most consequential votes in American history: it made Lincoln the first Republican ever to win the presidency, set him against a deeply divided Democratic opposition, and set the nation on the road to civil war.
Lincoln had been a relatively little-known figure just a few years earlier — a former congressman from Illinois known nationally for his debates with Stephen Douglas over the expansion of slavery. By 1860, the country was tearing itself apart over that very question, and the election became the moment the crisis came to a head.
What happened in the election of 1860
The presidential election of 1860 was fought against the backdrop of a nation divided over slavery. The Republican platform opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories — a position Lincoln had championed for years. The Democratic Party, by contrast, was deeply divided: its northern and southern wings could not agree on a candidate or a platform, and the party effectively split, fielding rival tickets.
That division proved decisive. With his opposition fractured, Lincoln carried the northern states and won the electoral votes needed for the presidency. His victory made him the first Republican to win the White House, just six years after the party’s founding — a remarkable rise for a new political movement.
For the slaveholding South, the result was intolerable. Lincoln had not called for abolishing slavery where it already existed, but the South did not trust his assurances, and many Southerners viewed his election as an existential threat to their way of life.
The road to the Civil War
What happened next unfolded with terrifying speed. Before Lincoln could even take the oath of office, seven Southern states seceded from the Union. By the time of his inauguration in March 1861, the country was already coming apart — and within weeks, the attack on Fort Sumter plunged the nation into the American Civil War.
Lincoln’s presidency would be defined by that war and by his determination to preserve the Union. From it came the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared enslaved people in the rebellious states free; the Gettysburg Address, his brief and immortal meditation on democracy and sacrifice; and ultimately, the preservation of the United States as one nation.
How to mark this day in history
Learn about the 1860 election. Few elections in American history reward study like this one. Understanding how a divided opposition, a clear moral position on slavery’s expansion, and a new political party combined to put Lincoln in the White House is a masterclass in how democracies work — and fail.
Read the Gettysburg Address. At just a few hundred words, Lincoln’s address at Gettysburg is one of the most famous speeches in the English language — and a direct legacy of the presidency that began with the election of November 6, 1860.
Reflect on the stakes of elections. The voters of 1860 could not have known they were choosing the president who would lead the country through its bloodiest war. This anniversary is a good moment to reflect on how much can turn on a single election — and on the responsibility that comes with the vote.
Key facts about the election of 1860
On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln elected 16th president of the United States — the first Republican to win the presidency. His platform opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories. He won over a deeply divided Democratic Party whose northern and southern wings fielded rival candidates. Seven Southern states seceded before his inauguration, leading to the American Civil War. His presidency is remembered for the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, and the preservation of the Union.
Frequently asked questions
When was Abraham Lincoln elected president? Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th president of the United States on November 6, 1860.
Why was the 1860 election so important? It made Lincoln the first Republican president, was fought over the expansion of slavery, and directly led to the secession of Southern states and the American Civil War.
What did Lincoln’s platform stand for in 1860? The Republican platform opposed the expansion of slavery into the western territories, a position Lincoln had long championed.
What happened after Lincoln was elected? Seven Southern states seceded before his inauguration, and the country descended into the Civil War. Lincoln’s presidency brought the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, and the preservation of the Union.
Why the election of 1860 still matters
Few dates in American history carry the weight of November 6, 1860. The election decided that a new party, built on opposition to the expansion of slavery, could take the presidency — and the South’s refusal to accept the result broke the Union apart. What followed was four years of war that remade the nation.
Lincoln’s election matters not just for what it caused, but for what it revealed: that democratic institutions can produce turning points no one fully anticipates, and that the character of the person chosen in such a moment can shape a country’s fate for generations. The presidency that began on this day in 1860 ended slavery in America and held the United States together — a legacy that still defines the nation.
See all of the day’s observances on November 6 Holidays, Observances and History.