And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle

Part 2 opens with an account of Lincoln’s run for US House of Representatives in 1846. From this point onward, Lincoln is a national figure.

According to Meacham, Lincoln was not satisfied with campaigning for Henry Clay and wanted to run for office for himself. In 1846 he took this opportunity. He sought, and received, the Whig nomination for the 7th Congressional District of Illinois. In the general election Lincoln’s opponent was the preacher, Peter Cartwright. Lincoln’s unconventional religious views were a point of contention during the race. Nevertheless, he was victorious, and was elected by a wide margin. Despite this victory, Lincoln reported to his friend Joshua Speed that he faced another bout of depression.

Once in office, Lincoln opposed the statehood of Texas on the grounds that it would add to the westward expansion of slavery, making the slaveholding territory of the United States enormous. In 1846, President Polk and the United States declared war on Mexico, to which Lincoln was opposed. He believed that the president’s war-making abilities should be curtailed. By 1847 the United States had won the war and with it the purchase on large swaths of territory in what is now the southwest United States.