The Solid South Flashcards
What was the Solid South?
. The Solid South was a collection of Southern States which nearly every election voted overwhelmingly Democrat.
. As a result these southern states became an area of nearly assured Democrat votes.
What were yellow dog Democrats?
. Were essentially state election candidates who were bound to win an election in a state as everyone would vote democrat in that state.
Summarise the decline of the Solid South 1964-1992
. In the ten subsequent elections following the the 1960 election the Democrats only won the southern majority once.
. By 1992 and 1996 the Democrats could not even win the south with a presidential ticket made up of two southerners.
. The Solid South finally fell apart with the Republicans giving the majority of the southern states as well as the majority in the House and Senate.
Why did the break up of the Solid South take place?
. It mainly occurred as a result of the Republicans gaining power in the Southern states p, therefore ousting the Democrats from those states.
What did the effect of the break up of the Solid South have on the parties?
. The break up led to the two main parties becoming more ideologically distinct.
. The Republicans as a result became more conservative while the Democrats became more homogenous/ liberal.
. The Democrats liberal stance held true up until the 1980’s. In the 1990’s however the party moved back to its centre right ideology.
