ongressional elections 44 Republicans were elected as a part of the anti-Nebraskan majority in the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, and several Republicans were elected to the SENATE and to various state houses. In 1856, at the first Republican national convention, Sen. John C. Fremont was nominated for the presidency but was defeated by Democrat James BUCHANAN. During the campaign the northern wing of the KNOW-NOTHING PARTY split off and endorsed the Republican ticket, making the Republicans the principal antislavery party.Two days after the inauguration of James Buchanan, the Supreme Court handed down the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision, which increased sectional dissension and was denounced by the Republicans. At this time the nation was also gripped by economic chaos. Business blamed tariff reductions, and Republican leaders called for greater tariff protection. The split in the Democratic party over the issue of slavery continued, and in 1858 the Republicans won control of the House of Representatives for the first time. One Republican who failed that year was Abraham LINCOLN, defeated in his bid for a U.S. Senate seat by Stephen A. Douglas.Lincoln, the Civil War, and ReconstructionAt the second Republican national convention, in 1860, a hard- fought contest resulted in the presidential nomination of Abraham Lincoln. The Republican platform specifically pledged not to extend slavery and called for enactment of free- homestead legislation, prompt establishment of a daily overland mail service, a transcontinental railroad, and support of the protective tariff. Lincoln was opposed by three major candidates--Douglas (Northern Democrat), John Cabell BRECKINRIDGE (Southern Democrat), and John Bell (Constitutional Union party). Lincoln collected almost half a million votes more than Douglas, his nearest competitor, but he won the election with only 39.8 percent of the popular vote.Shortly thereafter, the Civil War began. Reverses on the battlefi...
