Republican Party, U.S.

The Republican Party (also known as the Grand Old Party, or GOP) is one of the two major political parties in the United States. It is known as the more conservative, right-of-center political party, as opposed to the Democratic Party.

The Republican Party emerged amid a tumultuous time in American history before the Civil War. In the 1850s, the Whig and Democratic Parties were unable to resolve their differences over the issue of slavery and over the growing economic, social, and cultural issues between the North and the South. President Abraham Lincoln, a former Whig, was elected as a Republican in 1860. During and after the brutal Civil War that followed, the GOP was the party of freedom for the slaves and unity of the country.

The ...