Georgia Democrats, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Shaping of the New South

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The precipitous fall of the Democratic Party in southern politics during the latter half of the twentieth century has sparked a rich scholarly debate. Many theories have been put forward to explain the sea change that swept Democrats out of office and replaced them with a new Republican order.

In this timely volume, Tim Boyd challenges one of the most prominent explanations for this shift: the white backlash theory. Taking the political experience in Georgia as a case study, he makes a compelling argument that New South politics formed out of the factional differences within the state Democratic Party and not simply as a result of white reactions to the civil rights movement.

Boyd deftly shows how Georgia Democrats forged a successful (if morally problematic) response to the civil rights movement, allowing them to remain in power until internal divisions eventually weakened the party. The result is a study that recognizes the myriad forces southern leaders faced as the Jim Crow South gave way to new political realities and greatly enhances our understanding of southern politics today.