The presidential election of 1864 was one of the most important in American history. It took place in the states of the Union during a bloody civil war, unprecedented for voting in a divided nation, and with seemingly ample justification for postponement. The vigorous but methodical procedure of the 1864 election, with relatively little corruption and minor malice, has become an excellent illustration and vindication of the democratic process itself. Moreover, it was an election in which voters cast ballots to decide fundamental issues regarding the course of the war, the government, and American society. This campaign posed some of the most vital questions to consider since the founding of the nation. Should the institution of slavery be expanded, maintained or abolished? Should we continue a war that would change American life forever, or was it time to compromise with the South and put an end to it? And who should replace the unpopular President Lincoln who seemed doomed to defeat? During his presidency, Lincoln was unpopular. Two main opposing factions in 1864 were Confederate sympathizers from the border states and pacifist Democrats from the lower Midwest, who believed that the Civil War was causing a decline in the Northern economy, states' rights, and civil liberties. Lincoln's two policies, emancipation and military conscription, were particularly distasteful to Northern Democrats. Lincoln had issued a pilot proclamation, declaring that he would free all slaves in Confederate lands if the Confederacy did not surrender by January 1, 1863; they didn't, so the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect, freeing thousands of slaves as the Union Army marched through the South. React to congressional ratification... middle of paper ......designed to challenge Republicans in future contests. Works Cited Flood, Charles Bracelen. 1864: Lincoln at the gates of History. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2009. Print. McPherson, James M. Liberty's Battle Cry: The Civil War Era. New York: Ballantine, 1988. Print.Murphy, DF Presidential Election, 1864. Proceedings of the National Union Convention held at Baltimore, Maryland, June 7-8, 1864. New York: Baker & Godwin, Printers, 1864. Print. (Pages 58-67, 68-76) The Civil War. Prod. Ken Burns. Real. Ken Burns. By Ken Burns and Ken Burns. Perf. David McCullough, Sam Waterston and Terry Courier. PBS, 1990. Waugh, John C. Lincoln and McClellan: The Troubled Partnership Between a President and His General. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. Print. Waugh, John C. Lincoln's Re-election: The Battle for the Presidency of 1864. New York: Crown, 1997. Print.