Lincoln lost the Illinois senatorial election of 1858. But his growing political capital in the North led to his nomination in May of 1860 as the Republican Presidential candidate. The news of Lincoln's nomination and later campaign victory inflamed tensions between the Northern and Southern states.
In an attempt to ease tensions between opposing factions in the North and South, Lincoln remained silent on the contentious issue of slavery leading up to his inauguration. But between November of 1860 and his inauguration in March of 1861, seven states still seceded from the United States to form the Confederate States of America.
In his First Inaugural Address, Lincoln finally spoke out against the secession. The Constitution, he argued, established a “perpetual union” and not a mere contract. This Union even predated the Constitution, stretching back before the American Revolution to “every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land.” A constitutional democracy, he reasoned, could not endure if the minority simply ignored these binding commitments when they became dissatisfied with the vote of the majority. The people had to work together to overcome their differences and accomplish their vision of a "more perfect Union."
Lincoln did not discuss his own faith during this period, but in the First Inaugural Address he evokes the concept of common faith as integral to the Union. Americans, he claimed, share a sense of spiritual unity and direction under God. Lincoln reasons, “Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm reliance on Him who has never yet forsaken this favored land are still competent to adjust in the best way all our present difficulty.” The new president appeals for a public confidence in superintending Divine justice, “If the Almighty Ruler of Nations, with His eternal truth and justice, be on your side of the North, or on yours of the South, that truth and that justice will surely prevail by the judgment of this great tribunal of the American people. As Lincoln began his first days in office and despite his hopes, it was becoming apparent that the crisis would not be resolved without bloodshed.
