Abraham Lincoln was in politics.
Abraham Lincoln . Largely self-educated , he became a lawyer in Illinois , a Whig Party leader , and was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives , in which he served for eight years . The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly , the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois . U.S. President Abraham Lincoln , who oversaw the American Civil War and the end of slavery in the United States , got his start in politics at the Illinois House of Representatives . The United States House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the United States Congress which , along with the Senate , composes the legislature of the United States .