Question

Why did the North need to maintain control of the border states during
the Civil War?
(A) Control of the border states would have given the South access to
much-needed centers of industry.
(B) President Lincoln needed the region’s political support to maintain
the presidency.
(C) The North relied on the slave labor in the region for production.
(D) The border states created an impenetrable buff er zone between the
North and South.
(E) The land of the border states was vital for the completion of a
transcontinental railroad.

Answer 1

The main reason why the North needed to maintain control of the border states during the Civil War was because "(B) President Lincoln needed the region’s political support to maintain the presidency," since these states remained loyal to the Union but were not necessarily "free states".