Election of 1860, Secession in Georgia, and Alexander Stephens

Election of 1860
          The Election of 1860 was when Abraham Lincoln won the Presidency. President Lincoln was a member of the Republican Party (which was created in response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act), and he was from Illinois. The election of President Lincoln caught the South by surprise, and angered them. The reason why this surprised them was because Abraham Lincoln was not even on the ballot in some of the southern states. Since he was not on the ballot in some states, it showed that the South almost did not even have a voice on important events, and this is what angered the southern states. South Carolina responded to the election almost at once, and they were the first state to secede from the Union. Also, Georgia would go on to secede on January 19, 1861. This election spurred the secession movement in the South.
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Secession in Georgia, and Alexander Stephens
          Georgia's Secession Convention decided that the state would secede from the Union, and this happened on January 19, 1861. There were secessionists and cooperationists who voted on whether or not to leave the Union. Secessionists wanted to secede from the Union, while cooperationists wanted to stay in the Union. The vote was in favor for secession, however it was not as unanimous in other states. Alexander Stephens was originally not sure about secession, and he supported the Compromise of 1850 (as long as the Fugitive Slave Act was passed). However, he soon realized that there was no way the state would be able to avoid secession, and he was chosen as the Vice President for the Confederacy. The South chose Alexander Stephens as Vice President because he was not originally in favor of secession. This gave the South diversity and they appealed to more people with Alexander Stephens as the Vice President of the Confederacy. It showed that if someone who originally did not want to secede but then changed his mind, that seceding was appealing.
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