<P> The Yankees, who dominated New England, much of upstate New York and much of the upper Midwest were the strongest supporters of the new party . This was especially true for the pietistic Congregationalists and Presbyterians among them and (during the war), the Methodists, along with Scandinavian Lutherans . The Quakers were a small tight - knit group that was heavily Republican . By contrast, the liturgical churches (Roman Catholic, Episcopal and German Lutheran) largely rejected the moralism of the Republican Party and most of their adherents voted Democratic . </P> <P> The early standard bearers of the party expressed views of government that marked the first years of its existence . For instance, William H. Seward, New York governor who vied with Lincoln for the nomination in 1860, had called for welcoming immigrants with "all the sympathy that their misfortunes at home, their condition as strangers here, and their devotion to liberty, ought to excite". In his 1861 message to Congress, Lincoln argued that the essential reason for preserving the central government was to maintain "in the world, that form, and substance of government, whose leading object is to elevate the condition of men--to lift artificial weights from all shoulders--to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all--to afford all, an unfettered start, and a fair chance, in the race of life". </P> <P> The first anti-Nebraska local meeting where Republican was suggested as a name for a new anti-slavery party was held in a Ripon, Wisconsin schoolhouse on March 20, 1854 . The first statewide convention that formed a platform and nominated candidates under the name Republican was held near Jackson, Michigan on July 6, 1854 . It declared their new party opposed to the expansion of slavery into new territories and selected a statewide slate of candidates . The Midwest took the lead in forming state party tickets while the eastern states lagged a year or so . There were no efforts to organize the party in the South, apart from St. Louis and a few areas adjacent to free states . The party initially had its base in the Northeast and Midwest . </P> <P> The party launched its first national convention in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on February 22, 1856, with its first national nominating convention held in the summer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, presided by Francis Preston Blair . </P>

When did the republican party gain support in the north and midwest