Every time a new president of the United States is elected, at least one other person is defeated. When Abraham Lincoln was elected president, Stephen A. Douglas (1813-1861) was the candidate who was defeated.
Douglas had a nickname. It was "The Little Giant." He got his nickname because he was very short but had a big head and big shoulders. He had an excellent voice and made many wonderful speeches.
In 1858, two years before Lincoln defeated Douglas, Douglas had defeated Lincoln. But then they were running for senator, not president. Lincoln and Douglas traveled all over Illinois to tell the voters what their ideas were. They had many debates. These debates were of great interest to the whole country. Douglas persuaded the voters of Illinois that his ideas were better than Lincoln's. He won the election to the U.S. Senate.
But the tables were turned in the race for president. Because of the stand Douglas took on the slavery question, he made the Southern Democrats angry. When it came time to choose a president, these Southerners refused to vote for him. Lincoln won.
Soon after the election, the War between the States began. Douglas offered to help Lincoln in any way he could. But he had little chance to do so. He died from typhoid fever only two months after the beginning of the war.
