In United States history, the American Civil War was due to a dispute over the rights of the states. In the Election of 1860, the Democratic Party split in two because the candidate nominated by Northern Democrats was not supported by the southern Democrats. Stephen A. Douglas was too liberal for the South because he supported the theory of popular sovereignty in the new territories, where the majority of the people in the territories would decide whether slavery would be allowed in the territories. This concept had led to Bleeding Kansas, a series of bloody uprisings in Kansas Territory where the theory was tested. They nominated a candidate who was opposed to this. The Democratic vote was split between the two candidates, allowing the Republican candidate, Abraham Lincoln to take the election. Although there was a majority of the electoral votes going to Lincoln, there was only a plurality of the popular votes. If one was to combine the Northern and Southern Democratic Parties, They would have a majority of the popular votes. Lincoln's radical platform called for the prevention of the expansion of slavery, and he eventually outlawed the practice of slavery in the Union. The South foresaw this happening, and instead of taking another blow from the North-dominated government, they seceded and formed the Confederate States of America. This effort was spearheaded by South Carolina, the beating heart of the South. The oppressive policies of the North forced the South to secede by their domination of government and their refusal to balance power.