Divided Republic

About this board game

Divided Republic is a card-driven election game for 2–4 players, with sessions lasting about 180 minutes, set during the tense months before the American Civil War.

Players represent the four major parties of the 1860 presidential election: the Constitutional Unionists, Northern Democrats, Republicans, and Southern Democrats. Each party seeks to defeat its rivals through dirty tricks, platform speeches, and manipulation of key historical events.

The contest unfolds against a rapidly deteriorating political landscape. President Buchanan interferes, radicals riot, and the country continues its downward spiral toward civil war. Unlike a typical two-sided election game, Divided Republic reflects an era of four major parties, when candidates did not generally campaign for themselves and political labels carried very different meanings.

• Compete across a four-party presidential election.
• Use card-driven play to influence the unfolding crisis.
• Attempt to reach the required 152 or more electoral votes.
• Face the possibility of an electoral tie decided by the US Congress.
• Watch for rebellion and secession in South Carolina, which can end the game with everyone losing.

Any party can potentially win the presidency, so the outcome is not simply a predetermined Republican victory. At the same time, intense player interaction and changing historical events keep the race volatile, with even the mudslinging offering a few laughs along the way.

Designed as a light to medium weight game, Divided Republic combines accessible card-driven play with a dramatic historical setting and plenty of direct political conflict.