On February 2, 1858, President James Buchanan supported the Lecompton Constitution for the Kansas Territory. This pro-slavery document was bitterly contested in the United States Senate by Free Soil Republicans and Northern Democrats vs. Pro-Slavery Southern Democrats. These debates dragged on delaying Kansas statehood until 1861, when it was admitted as a free state. Six years later, Maryland was undergoing its own state Constitutional Convention, debating whether to retain the institution of s

The 1856 presidential election was a critical moment in American history, reflecting the intense national debate over slavery. Democrat James Buchanan, a experienced politician, ran against Republican John C. Frémont, a military hero and anti-slavery advocate. The election occurred amid escalating tensions following the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which allowed territories to decide on slavery through popular sovereignty, leading to violent confrontations known as "Bleeding Kansas." Buchanan ca