Prior to the mid-1960s there were so few Republicans in the South that most southern states did not even have Republican primaries. Most had not had an elected Republican in office since 1880, because the Republican party during the Civil War and in the Reconstruction era was the party of freedom, calling for an end to racial discrimination and bigotry. Yet, today the Republicans dominate the region. The question is where in the hell did all these Republicans come from?
The answer was simple. Racism, prejudice, discrimination, and white superiority were still deeply engrained in the people and institutions of the South -- including evangelical religion. With the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights act, this white superiority culture became deeply angered and struck out against the Democratic Party which had passed those historic bills. Both the cultural and pathological bigots flocked to the Republican party in droves. Unfortunately, in its lust for power and control Republican party allowed these bigots to turn its ideology on its head -- from being the party of freedom and democracy to a party against minorities and the poor.
As a consequence, we have today a Republican solid South spreading its poison of bigotry, legal discrimination, and white supremacy beyond its borders. This is the most evil force in our country today. The Republican Party in the deep South is a party without honor, without a real moral core.