Abolitionism was a movement in the northern United States that sought to ultimately outlaw enslavement nationally and emancipate Black enslaved persons in the South. Their arguments influenced some of the Republican Party to take a strong stance against enslavement in the years leading up to the Civil War.

Black Republicans was a derogatory term used by Democrats against members of the Republican Party who were accused of supporting Black emancipation. The term was used to try to play on public racism and undermine Republican candidates.

Referring to a dye from the butternut tree used to color clothes, Butternuts were settlers in the southern regions of the free states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois who reliably voted for Democrats in contrast to the usually pro-Republican North. They were a major source of support for Peace Democrats in the North.