Public Speaking - Debate Research

• Arguments that the debates had a large impact on the 1860 election: 

The 1858 debates helped Lincoln gain national exposure by placing him alongside the more prominent Douglas. That exposure propelled him into the presidency in 1860. Furthermore, during the debates Lincoln forced Douglas to admit that he would allow slavery to be banned in a territory under the principle of popular sovereignty. That position angered Southern Democrats, causing them to withdraw critical support from Douglas in the 1860 election.

• Arguments that the debates did not have an impact on the 1860 election: 

Douglas did not express any new principle during the debates; he had publicly expressed his support for popular sovereignty several times in the years leading up to the debates, and he continued to uphold the principle after the debates ended. The South did not withdraw its support from Douglas simply because of what he said during the debates. Furthermore, Lincoln was chosen as the Republican presidential candidate only after the leading candidates alienated powerful factions within the party.