A major talking point between Democrats and Republicans is the idea of a party switch. That being said, conservatives and liberals might have shifted their support between the two parties.
Looking back, this seems plausible. The Democrats used to support slavery. The president of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, was a Democrat, and many propaganda pieces pointed out that the democratic party was “for the white man”.
Today, however, the Democrats are the liberal party of America. They generally stand in support of LGBTQ+ rights, advocate for black lives matter, and think the government has a big role to play for the people. Well, what happened? How does a party that oppressed and put down African Americans for generations become the leading choice for African Americans? Why have the Democrats changed their stances so many times?
Since their founding, the Democrats have identified themselves as “the people’s party”. Starting in 1828, it was created entirely for the opposition of the National-Republican of John Quincy Adams, and to promote Andrew Jackson’s idea of advocating for the interests of the “common man”.
If this is the case, what do you do when the people’s opinion stands firmly against African Americans? You side with the common man.
The Democrats’ position on Black voting rights stood firmly against it from the 1830s, all the way to the end of the 19th century. However, in between the presidency of Democrat Woodrow Wilson, from 1913 to 1921, all the way to Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1933 to 1945, the Democrats’ position on civil rights wavered heavily depending on the region you asked a Democrat in, and the time. If you were to ask a Mississippi Democrat in 1920 his opinion on civil rights, he’d laugh and strongly oppose it. But a Northern Democrat from New York City in 1940 might say he supports it. The Democrats, for a while, relied on where they were based to win votes, which heavily contributed to them not holding office for several decades until Woodrow Wilson.
In 1961, John. F. Kennedy was elected to office as a pro-civil rights leader and a Democrat. A majority of the South voted for him, including Texas. However, after his assassination in 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson, A pro-civil rights leader and Democrat, crushed Barry M. Goldwater in an electoral landslide, winning almost every state but the South.
This moment is where the Democrats’ and Republicans’ voting platforms switched.
Since 1964, the Democrats have been advocates for many civil rights topics, such as LGBTQ+rights, civil rights, and gender equality. The Democrats have always held their support in the arms of the people, with what the people want. A true “people’s party”.
We can even see this trend of flipping stances on the issue of Israel. Israel has been a hot topic as of late, with its ongoing war in Gaza and actions that many have condemned within the government. Nearly a decade ago, many Democrats did not voice their disapproval of Israel, but many prominent Democrats, such as Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, uses fiery language against Israel. Note, the majority of the Democrats support Israel; this shift in opinion has only happened very recently and shows how fast the party can change itself to adapt to public opinion.
Many early Democrats actually originated from the People’s Party, a party created to rival the economic hardships of the late 1800s. But in 1896, the party merged back into the Democrats, and the populist wing of the Democrats has been a large part of the party’s drive.
