Laying in bed reading a short biography of Abraham Lincoln by James McPherson, one of those lost jewels of history popped up: McPherson wrote how before the 1858 election the Illinois politicians redrew state legislative districts to favor Democrats – which made a difference because back in those days United States Senators weren’t elected by popular vote, they were elected by state legislatures.

Lincoln, McPherson said, may well have won the popular vote against Stephen Douglas in 1858 but lost the election because the politicians in Illinois jiggered the legislative districts to favor Douglas.

Imagine that: Abraham Lincoln a victim of gerrymandering.