Lincoln Day is the primary annual celebration and fundraising event of many state and county organizations of the Republican Party in the United States. It is held annually in February or March depending on the county and often features a well known speaker from the Republican Party.
Its counterpart for the Democrats, held the same time every year, is the Jefferson-Jackson Day celebration.
Though traditionally named after Abraham Lincoln as the first elected president of the Republican Party, the event has been renamed Reagan Day in some locations following the death of Ronald Reagan for the purpose of honoring Reagan and modernizing the Republican Party's message. Commenting on this difference in 2005, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina joked "We don’t do Lincoln Day Dinners in North Carolina. It’s nothing personal, but it takes a while to get over things," referencing the fact that Lincoln's election led to the secession of South Carolina and other states. In some recent instances Lincoln-Reagan dinners are also held.
Famous quotes containing the words lincoln and/or day:
“But, slavery is good for some people! ! ! As a good thing, slavery is strikingly peculiar, in this, that it is the only good thing which no man ever seeks the good of, for himself.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“The last best hope of earth, two trillion dollars in debt, is spinning out of control, and all we can do is stare at a flickering cathode-ray tube as Ollie “answers” questions on TV while the press, resolutely irrelevant as ever, asks politicians if they have committed adultery. From V-J Day 1945 to this has been, my fellow countrymen, a perfect nightmare.”
—Gore Vidal (b. 1925)