Presidential transition of Abraham Lincoln

This article is part of a series about Abraham Lincoln
Personal Early life and career Family Health Sexuality Patent Political Spot Resolutions Political career, 1849–1861 Lincoln–Douglas debates Views on slavery Views on religion Electoral history 16th President of the United States Presidency First term Transition 1st inauguration Hannibal Hamlin American Civil War The Union Emancipation Proclamation Ten percent plan 13th Amendment Second term 2nd inauguration Andrew Johnson Reconstruction Presidential elections 1860 Convention 1864 Convention Speeches and works Inaugural speeches First Second State of the Union 1861 1862 1863 1864 Lyceum Peoria Lost Speech House Divided Cooper Union Farewell address Gettysburg Poetry "The Suicide's Soliloquy" Bixby letter McCullough letter Assassination and legacy Assassination State funeral Historical reputation Memorials Depictions Bibliography Topical guide
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This article or section is part of a series about United States presidential transitions
Transitions
Lincoln (1860–1861) Wilson (1912–1913) Harding (1920–1921) Hoover (1928–1929) Roosevelt (1932–1933) Eisenhower (1952–1953) Kennedy (1960–1961) Nixon (1968–1969) Carter (1976–1977) Reagan (1980–1981) G. H. W. Bush (1988–1989) B. Clinton (1992–1993) G. W. Bush (2000–2001) Obama (2008–2009) Trump (2016–2017) Biden (2020–2021) Trump (2024–2025) Planned transitions Romney (2012) H. Clinton (2016) Harris (2024)
Related
President-elect of the United States Vice President-elect of the United States End of Term Web Archive Midnight regulations Plum Book
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The presidential transition of Abraham Lincoln began when he won the United States 1860 United States presidential election, becoming the president-elect of the United States, and ended when Lincoln was inaugurated on March 4, 1861.

The secession crisis of 1860–61 began soon after Lincoln became president-elect. This has been widely considered the most difficult crisis that any president-elect has faced during his transition into office.^[1][2][3] Lincoln spent much of his transition period trying to avert southern secession.

During his transition, President-elect Lincoln selected members of the Cabinet and attempted to prevent the secession of southern states. Lincoln delivered an emotional farewell address when departing his hometown of Springfield, Illinois, for the District of Columbia (the nation's capital). His trip to the District of Columbia was done covertly to avoid a potential assassination attempt (the Baltimore Plot).