Robert Byrd (D)(KKK Senate Leader for decades), George Wallace, Bull Conner, Lyndon B. Johnson and all the rest of the Southern racists (except for Lester Maddox) STAYED Democrat. The rank and file racists stayed democrat too.
I lived in the Jim Crow South when it was a solid one-party region and that 'one-party' was Democrat. When Republicans moved South from the North they registered as democrats because whoever won the local primary WAS the WINNER (because NO Republicans were ever elected to anything). So if Republicans wanted their vote to matter they had to vote in the primary -- which required registering as 'democrat'. Voting in the general election was worthless because the democrat always won.
As soon as the 60's came around and Republicans could have a voice in the racist South - and a chance at electing someone, Republicans ran to the court house and changed their party affiliation back to Republican.
All the Southern democrat racists stayed Democrats. Lester Maddox was the only known racists to become a Republican...
The Washington Posy is lying... as usual. Or Joshua N. Zingher and his editor are stupid...
Thank you for that bit of history. I never knew that. What about Thurmond and Jesse Helms?