Question

Carefully examine the various political parties running candidates in the election of 1852. How do their various platforms point to what would ultimately become the U.S. Civil War in the following decade?

Answer 1

The compromise of 1850

Step-by-step explanation:

The election of 1852 must be seen in the light of the compromise of 1850 which enforced the Fugitive Slave Law. That is to say, the election was overshadowed by the north-south division on the subject of slavery that ultimately led to the U.S. Civil War. The two major candidates, Franklin Pierce, democratic, and Winfield Scott, from the Whig party, were quite alike in their political views, so the election became a contest of personalities.

The Whigs, though, were very much divided between their Northern and Southern wings; Scott´s anti-slavery reputation damaged his campaign in the South. The fact that a group of Southern Whigs and a separate group of Southern Democrats nominated their own tickets, makes it clear that the country was divided.