Busy dueling for the mantle of “party of the people,” neither the Whigs nor the Democrats offered a plausible solution to the problem of slavery; they barely addressed it. This led to the founding of new parties, including the evangelical Liberty Party, formed in 1839. “We must abolish slavery,” the party pledged, “& as sure as the sun rises we shall in 5 or 6 years run over slavery at full gallop unless she pulls herself up & gets out of the way of Liberty’s cavalry.” Its bid to evangelical Whigs: “Vote as you pray.”
