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 at noon 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 their transition into office. Lincoln spent much of his transition period trying to avert southern secession.
