Depending upon when you viewed Lincoln’s popularity, this would determine how much other politicians respected him. Early on in Lincoln’s career in politics and other ventures, other politicians did think very highly of Lincoln or had much respect for him. He lost several key offices during some of the elections. One of those was for Douglas’s seat in Congress. He spent a lot of time debating with Douglas.
He lost to Douglas but only by a few votes. Also, there were times when Lincoln held a political office and then at the end of his term he went back to a position that did not involve politics. At this time, other politicians did not support him because he was not serious about politics.