1860 Democratic National Conventions

rdf:langString 1860 Democratic National Conventions

rdf:langString John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky

rdf:langString Joseph Lane of Oregon

rdf:langString Nominees

rdf:langString Breckinridge and Lane

rdf:langString Douglas and Johnson

rdf:langString Baltimore, Maryland

rdf:langString Democratic

rdf:langString Front Street Theater

rdf:langString Front Street Theater &

rdf:langString Maryland Institute

rdf:langString South Carolina Institute Hall,

rdf:langString The 1860 Democratic National Conventions were a series of presidential nominating conventions held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1860 election. The first convention, held from April 23 to May 3 in Charleston, South Carolina, failed to nominate a ticket, while two subsequent conventions, both held in Baltimore, Maryland in June, nominated two separate presidential tickets. Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois entered the Charleston convention as the front-runner for the presidential nomination, and while he won a majority on the first presidential ballot of the convention, the convention rules required a two-thirds majority to win the nomination, with Douglas's adherence to the Freeport Doctrine regarding slavery in the territories engendering strong opposition from many Southern delegates: opponents of Douglas's nomination spread their support among five major candidates, including former Treasury Secretary James Guthrie of Kentucky and Senator Robert M. T. Hunter of Virginia. After 57 ballots over a span of two days, in which Douglas consistently won at least half of the delegates, the Charleston convention adjourned when it became apparent no candidate could secure the required two-thirds of all votes. The Democratic convention reconvened in Baltimore on June 18, but many Southern delegates either boycotted the convention or walked out in protest after the convention adopted a platform in which it pledged to abide by the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States upon questions of Constitutional Law regarding slavery. While Douglas was nominated for president on the second ballot (the 59th ballot overall), Senator Benjamin Fitzpatrick of Alabama was nominated for vice president, but he refused the nomination: he was replaced by former Governor Herschel Vespasian Johnson of Georgia. The boycotting Southern Democrats and those who had walked out held their own separate convention and adopted a pro-slavery platform, nominating Vice President John C. Breckinridge for president, and Senator Joseph Lane of Oregon for vice president. While Douglas and Breckinridge received a combined 47.62% of the popular vote in the 1860 presidential election, they lost the election to Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln.