A Guide to Voting in 1860 (and Helpful Tips for this November)

As the dozens of political texts, emails, and calls I receive daily keep reminding me, the election 2024 presidential election is just 45 days away! Are you registered to vote? Do you have a plan to vote early? Are you voting absentee? Do you know where your polling place is? Do you know what ID you must bring?

Voting is a deeply important way that we, as Americans, get to interact with our government. Please, if you are eligible to vote, make a plan. Vote early if possible! (If you live in Grinnell there will be early voting on Oct. 17 in the Joe Rosenfield ’25 Center from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m).

But this blog is for a history class and this week we are talking about the election of 1860. This is the election that directly preceded (and depending on who you ask, caused) the Civil War. This election is a big deal!

Do you know how you are voting in 1860? Well firstly, unless you are a man, good news—you don’t have to wait in line! Sure, it’s because you can’t vote, but the suffrage movement has only just begun. Further, Black men can only vote in Five states: Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire. Additionally South Carolinians did not vote for president in 1860, as the Legislature still directly picked the state’s electors.

Let’s pretend you can vote though; what’s impacting your decision?

Here in 1860, slavery is at the front of many voters’ minds and there are four candidates. The first candidate, Lincon, is a Republican opposed to expanding slavery into new states and territories. Lincon’s former political rival for Illinois senate, Stephen Douglas, is the Democrat running on popular sovereignty, or the idea that each new state and territory should be allowed to decide if people should be able to legally own other people there. Douglas is, however, not the only Democrat running; John Breckinridge is running as the Southern Democratic candidate on a platform that is more pro-slavery than Douglas. Lastly, John Bell is running as the Constitutional Union candidate. Bell is anti-succession due to slavery, his platform is “the constitution”, and according to Michael Burlingame, his supporters would hand out bells for people to ring at rallies.

There is a lot of commotion in the lead up to the election. You probably saw or heard grassroots protests like the Wide Awakes—groups of young white (and a small number of Black) Republican men who marched through cities and towns with torches in support of Lincon. The Democrats have attempted to create a similar youth movement but have fallen flat. Historian Jon Grinspan argues that, while the Wide Awakes likely did not turn the election for Lincon, they did generate a great deal of youth momentum and enthusiasm for him, so while they probably did not convince you to vote for Lincon, maybe they made you more excited about him.

On November 6^th, according to Grinspan, “Thousands of plain-clothed wide awakes policed the polls.” So maybe you gab with a Wide Awake friend before casting your vote for Lincon. Hopefully you remembered to live in a Northern state because Lincon is not on the ballot in the South. After you vote, your vote is read out loud in front of the small crowed gathered. Good job voting! Unfortunately, it seems like you won’t get a sticker.

In 1860 Lincon won the election. The civil war started soon after. Four years later, “In the middle of a devastating civil war,” Michael Burlingame writes, “the United States held its presidential election almost without discussion about any alternatives. No other democratic nation had ever conducted a national election during times of war.” After the election of 1860 we kept voting and slowly began to expand suffrage.

The election of 1860 was complicated and contested election. We don’t have to pretend to vote in this election. Suffrage, while still not universal, has been massively expanded, and yet turnout is down. In 1860 over 80% of eligible voters turned out. In the last presidential election, more Americans voted than ever before, and yet only 66% of eligible voters turned out.

I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but this year, if you are eligible, you must wait in the line, the 2024 election is deeply important. But hey, look on the bright side, now you get a sticker.

This November 5^th Americans will once again vote for president. Unlike in 1860, all citizens over 18 can vote, your vote is private, and if you run into any trouble on election day, you can use your phone to call the election non-partisan Election Protection Hotline at 866-687-8683. Make a plan now, double check your voter status, and vote.