Final answer:
Abraham Lincoln won the 1860 presidential election by securing a majority in the Electoral College, despite receiving only 39% of the popular vote, because the Democratic Party was split among several candidates.
Step-by-step explanation:
The election of 1860 is one of the most significant events in American history because it led to the presidency of Abraham Lincoln and set the stage for the Civil War. Despite winning only 39% of the popular vote, Lincoln secured the presidency by taking advantage of the split within the Democratic Party. His main opponents were John C. Breckinridge, representing Southern Democrats who were pro-slavery, and Stephen A. Douglas, representing Northern Democrats who had a more moderate stance on the issue of slavery. Another candidate, John Bell, represented the Constitutional Union party, further splitting the vote.
Lincoln's strategy was successful in part because he won every northern state except New Jersey, where he split the vote with Douglas. Even with his name blocked from the ballot in many southern states, Lincoln's Republican victory was secured by winning a majority of Electoral College votes. The split within his opposition made it so that none of his rivals could individually gain enough electoral support to defeat him, with Breckinridge coming closest with 72 electoral votes to Lincoln's 180 electoral votes.
The 1860 election highlighted the deep division within the country over slavery and foreshadowed the conflict that would erupt following Lincoln's election. His presidency and the subsequent Civil War shaped the future of the United States in profound ways.