(1858), a series of seven debates between Democrat
Stephen A. Douglas and Republican
Abraham Lincoln during a campaign for the U.S. Senate seat from Illinois. The major issue was the question of the legal status of slavery in the territories. Douglas supported the concept of
popular sovereignty to decide whether a given territory would be free or slave, and Lincoln opposed the expansion of slavery. Douglas won the senatorial election, because U.S. senators at that time were chosen by state legislatures, and the Democrats carried the Illinois legislature that year. Lincoln, however, became a national political figure and two years later defeated Douglas for the presidency.
