Apentix/AP US History/Unit 5: Period 5 (1844-1877)/Question
AP US Historymediummcq1 pt

Which of the following best explains why Lincoln's victory in 1860 triggered secession?

A.Lincoln won an electoral majority with almost no southern votes, showing that the North could elect a president hostile to slavery's expansion without the South
B.Lincoln campaigned on immediate abolition throughout the South
C.Congress had already expelled the southern states from the Union
D.The Supreme Court ordered the South to emancipate its slaves

Explanation

Core Concept

Lincoln received no electoral votes from most slave states yet still won. Southern leaders concluded the political system could no longer protect slavery, so they left the Union before he took office.

Correct Answer

ALincoln won an electoral majority with almost no southern votes, showing that the North could elect a president hostile to slavery's expansion without the South

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