Stephen A. Douglas: The Lecompton Constitution Opposition

The Lecompton Constitution was the second of four proposed state constitutions of Kansas, drafted in the city of Lecompton in 1857. It was strongly pro-slavery and included provisions to protect slavery in the state and exclude free people of colour from its bill of rights. It was preceded by the anti-slavery Topeka Constitution and was followed by the Leavenworth and Wyandotte Constitutions, with the latter becoming the Kansas state constitution. The Lecompton Constitution was endorsed by President James Buchanan, who was a vocal supporter of enslaver rights. However, it was opposed by many Northern Democrats, including Senator Stephen A. Douglas, who felt that it violated popular sovereignty and lacked true popular sovereignty. Douglas, a Democrat from Illinois, broke with his party and joined Republicans in trying to block the Kansas statehood bill, which passed the Senate in March 1858. This break had significant consequences, including further fracturing the Democratic Party and contributing to Lincoln's election in 1860.

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Stephen C. Douglas's opposition to the Lecompton Constitution was based on his belief in popular sovereignty

Stephen Douglas, a Democrat, was a leading advocate of "popular sovereignty", which was the notion that the settlers in the territories themselves should decide on the issue of slavery. Douglas's belief in popular sovereignty was a direct result of his commitment to the Constitution as the ultimate law of the land. He argued that the question of whether slavery was morally right was moot because the Constitution of the United States allowed slavery to exist.

Douglas's idea of popular sovereignty was put to the test in Kansas, where he was the author of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. The Act required people to decide on the issue of slavery through their vote for a constitution for any new territory which desired to become a state. This led to a series of events in Kansas and Missouri that culminated in violence and became known as "Bleeding Kansas".

The Lecompton Constitution, drafted in 1858, was the second of four proposed state constitutions of Kansas. It was strongly pro-slavery and included provisions to protect slavery in the state and to exclude free people of colour from its bill of rights. It prevented the legislature from emancipating enslaved people without their enslavers' consent and full compensation.

Douglas opposed the Lecompton Constitution because it lacked true popular sovereignty. The referendum on the Lecompton Constitution only gave voters the right to decide whether more slaves could enter the territory, not whether any slaves could enter. This was because even if the constitution was approved with the prohibition of new slaves, it still would have allowed the continued enslavement of those currently held in bondage and their descendants. Thus, the vote on this document did not represent true popular sovereignty, as voters were not given the option to reject the constitution entirely—the true anti-slavery option.

Douglas's opposition to the Lecompton Constitution caused him to break with his party and join with the Republicans in trying to block the Kansas statehood bill. This had significant and damaging consequences, as Southerners felt betrayed by Douglas's actions and blacklisted him. This was one of the reasons that the Democrats ran two sectional candidates in the Election of 1860, with Douglas as the Northern Democrat candidate and John C. Breckenridge as the Southern Democrat candidate.

The Lecompton Constitution was pro-slavery, while Douglas's position on slavery was ambiguous

The Lecompton Constitution was a pro-slavery document drafted in 1857 in Lecompton, Kansas. It was the second of four proposed state constitutions of Kansas. The document was written in response to the anti-slavery position of the 1855 Topeka Constitution. The Lecompton Constitution enshrined slavery in the proposed state and protected the rights of slave owners. It prevented the legislature from emancipating enslaved people without their owners' consent and full compensation.

Stephen A. Douglas, on the other hand, had an ambiguous position on slavery. He is closely linked with "Bleeding Kansas" and the Missouri-Kansas "Border War." He was a strong partisan, but he was committed to the Constitution as the ultimate law of the land. He believed that the Constitution was the law of the land and that secession was anathema. He was the author of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which required people to decide on the issue of slavery through their vote for a constitution for any new territory which desired to become a state. This act, based on Douglas's notion of "popular sovereignty," led to a series of events in Kansas and Missouri that culminated in violence and became known as "Bleeding Kansas." Douglas's position on slavery was debated by historians. He claimed not to care whether slavery "was voted up or down, only that the decision be left to local majorities." He continued to own slaves, which caused him political problems, even into the famous debates with Abraham Lincoln in an 1858 campaign for the U.S. Senate. Lincoln pressured Douglas to say definitively whether he believed slavery to be morally right. In response, Douglas argued that the question was moot because the Constitution of the United States allowed slavery to exist. He believed that only a state, through the voice of its inhabitants and their elected legislatures, had the right to decide to allow slavery within its borders.

The Lecompton Constitution was strongly opposed by Douglas because it lacked true popular sovereignty. He felt that it violated the principle of popular sovereignty, which was central to his political platform. Douglas's successful leadership of the anti-Lecompton effort prompted some prominent members of the infant Republican Party to urge support for his 1858 re-election bid. However, despite Douglas's objections, the Kansas statehood bill passed the Senate on March 23, 1858, by a vote of 33 to 25. Douglas's break with the Democratic Party over the Lecompton Constitution had significant and damaging consequences. Southerners felt betrayed by his actions and blacklisted him. This was one of the reasons that the Democrats ran two sectional candidates in the Election of 1860, with Douglas as the Northern Democrat candidate and John C. Breckenridge as the Southern Democrat candidate.

Douglas's opposition to the constitution led to a break with his Democratic Party

Stephen Douglas, a Democrat from Illinois, was a leading advocate of "popular sovereignty", which held that the decision on the morality of slavery should be left to local majorities. This notion formed the basis of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which required people to decide on the issue of slavery through their vote for a constitution for any new territory which desired to become a state.

In 1857, Kansas held an election to choose delegates for an upcoming constitutional convention. Suspecting that pro-slavery forces would rig the elections, anti-slavery forces boycotted them. The convention, made up of exclusively pro-slavery delegates, met at Lecompton and drafted a constitution that protected the rights of slaveholders already living in Kansas. The Lecompton Constitution gave the voters of Kansas the right to decide only on whether more slaves would enter the territory.

Douglas opposed the Lecompton Constitution because it lacked true popular sovereignty. He believed that only a state, through the voice of its inhabitants and their elected legislatures, had the right to decide to allow slavery within its borders. Douglas's opposition to the constitution led him to break with President James Buchanan, who supported the pro-slavery vote on the Lecompton Constitution in Kansas. Despite Douglas's objections, the Kansas statehood bill passed the Senate on March 23, 1858, by a vote of 33 to 25.

Douglas's break with Buchanan had significant and damaging consequences for the Democratic Party. Southerners felt betrayed by Douglas's actions and blacklisted him. This was one of the reasons that the Democrats ran two sectional candidates in the Election of 1860, with Stephen Douglas as the Northern Democrat candidate and John C. Breckenridge as the Southern Democrat candidate. This split in votes made it impossible for the Democratic Party to stop Lincoln's election, which served as the main catalyst for the secession of the lower South states.

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Douglas's opposition was part of a larger political fallout that led to Abraham Lincoln's election in 1860

Stephen A. Douglas, a Democrat senator from Illinois, was a key figure in the political turmoil that led to the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860. Douglas's opposition to the Lecompton Constitution was a significant factor in this process.

The Lecompton Constitution, drafted in 1857 in Lecompton, Kansas, was the second of four proposed state constitutions for Kansas. It was strongly pro-slavery, protecting the right to own slaves and excluding free people of colour from its bill of rights. It was approved in a rigged election in December 1857 but was defeated in a second vote in January 1858.

Douglas, the author of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, opposed the Lecompton Constitution because he believed it lacked true popular sovereignty. He felt that the people of Kansas should have the right to decide whether to allow slavery within their state. This position, while acceptable to many Northern Democrats, angered Southerners, leading to a split in the Democratic Party. Douglas's break with the party alienated Southerners, who felt betrayed by his actions. This division weakened the Democrats and made it difficult for them to present a unified front in the 1860 election.

The crisis over the Lecompton Constitution further built the Republican base, as Northern anti-Lecompton Democrats and Republicans worked together to block the Kansas statehood bill. This collaboration contributed to the growing strength of the Republican Party, which had formed in the 1850s as the major opposition to the Democrats.

The political fallout from the Lecompton Constitution crisis, combined with other events such as "Bleeding Kansas" and the Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision, created a volatile political landscape in the lead-up to the 1860 election. The Democratic Party was fractured, and the Republicans were gaining support, particularly due to their opposition to the extension of slavery into the territories.

In the 1860 election, the Democrats ran two sectional candidates: Stephen Douglas as the Northern Democrat candidate and John C. Breckenridge as the Southern Democrat candidate. This split in votes made it difficult for the Democrats to compete with Lincoln, who was running as the candidate of the generally anti-slavery Republican Party. Lincoln ultimately won the election, capturing the majority of electoral votes by dominating in the North and the Pacific Coast.

Thus, Douglas's opposition to the Lecompton Constitution was a significant factor in the political fallout that led to Lincoln's election in 1860. It contributed to the fracture of the Democratic Party, the growth of the Republican base, and the increasingly polarised national debate over slavery.

Douglas's opposition was supported by Northern Democrats and Republicans

Stephen Douglas, a Democrat from Illinois, was a vocal opponent of the Lecompton Constitution, a pro-slavery document drafted in 1857 in Lecompton, Kansas. The Lecompton Constitution was the second of four proposed constitutions for Kansas, and it aimed to protect slavery in the state and exclude free people of colour from its bill of rights. Douglas's opposition to this constitution was based on his belief in popular sovereignty, the idea that the people of a state should have the right to decide on the issue of slavery themselves.

Douglas's opposition to the Lecompton Constitution was supported by Northern Democrats and Republicans, who shared his belief that the constitution violated the principle of popular sovereignty. They argued that the document did not represent the true will of the people of Kansas, as it was drafted by a pro-slavery legislature and approved through a rigged election. This position was in stark contrast to that of President James Buchanan, who endorsed the Lecompton Constitution before Congress, alienating many Democrats, including Douglas.

The crisis over the Lecompton Constitution further fractured the Democratic Party, with Northern Democrats, led by Douglas, siding with the Republicans in opposition to the constitution. This divide was particularly evident in the House, where Northern anti-Lecompton Democrats and Republicans successfully blocked the passage of the Kansas statehood bill, causing a stalemate. Despite their efforts, the Kansas statehood bill eventually passed the Senate on March 23, 1858, by a vote of 33 to 25.

Douglas's break with the Democratic Party had significant political consequences. Southern Democrats felt betrayed by his actions, and this split in the party contributed to the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 and the subsequent secession of the lower South states. Douglas's opposition to the Lecompton Constitution, however, also earned him support from some prominent members of the Republican Party, such as Horace Greeley, who urged support for Douglas's 1858 re-election bid.

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