The election of 1860 was an election to decide between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas as the 16th president. Lincoln was not a fan favorite, but he won the election, due to Electoral College system. Lincoln made his position on slavery very clear. He wanted to end slavery. The people in the south opposed to the idea of abolishing slavery. The southern natives needed slaves for their “plantation based economy.”(P.469) Before the battle at Fort Sumter, President Lincoln called up the militia, he requested 75,000 men to assist him in restoring obedience to the law of the United States. Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Arkansas left the Union for the Confederacy. The North military advantage over the south was very significant. They