The Opposition Party was the name temporarily adopted in 1860 by North Carolina members of the Whig Party, which had practically dissolved over the slavery issue. Its supporters nominated John Pool for governor on a platform of union and an end to sectional agitation. Pool lost to John W. Ellis, the Southern Rights candidate.

Additional Resources:

Baggett, James Alex. The Scalawags: Southern Dissenters in the Civil War and Reconstruction. Louisiana State University Press. 2003.

Ellis, John Willis. Papers of John Willis Ellis: Volume 2. Raleigh [N.C.]: State Dept. of Archives and History. 1964. https://digital.ncdcr.gov/Documents/Detail/papers-of-john-willis-ellis-1860-1861-v.2/2691334?item=2794638