A Paler Shade of Red: The 2008 Presidential Election in the South

Contents

Contents List of Illustrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vii Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xi Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xiii Introduction: Southern Elections, Southern Politics . . . . . .xvii Robert P. Steed and Laurence W. Moreland Part I The Setting and the Nominating Process 1 The Continued Convergence of Demographics and Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Scott E. Buchanan 2 The 2008 Presidential Nomination Process . . . . . . . . . . .17 John A. Clark Part II Elections in the Deep South 3 Alabama: Electoral Continuity and Racial Voting . . . . .35 Patrick R. Cotter 4 Georgia: Where Competitiveness Came Late . . . . . . . . .49 Charles S. Bullock III 5 Louisiana: From Political Bellwether to Republican Stronghold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Robert E. Hogan and Eunice H. McCarney 6 Mississippi: Democrats Fight for Relevance in an Increasingly Republican State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83 David A. Breaux and Stephen D. Shaffer 7 South Carolina: A Paler Shade of Red? . . . . . . . . . . . . .95 Cole Blease Graham Part III Elections in the Rim South 8. Arkansas: He’s Not One of (Most of) Us . . . . . . . . . . .119 Jay Barth, Janine A. Parry, and Todd G. Shields 9. Florida: Obama Gives GOP the Blues . . . . . . . . . . . . .137 Jonathan Knuckey 10. North Carolina: Change and Continuity in 2008 . . . . .161 Charles Prysby 11. Tennessee: Cracker Barrel Realignment . . . . . . . . . . . .177 Ronald Keith Gaddie, with the assistance of Michael D. Jones 12. Texas: After the Bush Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .195 Brian Arbour and Mark McKenzie 13. Virginia: The New Math of Blue Virginia . . . . . . . . . . .215 John J. McGlennon Conclusion: Don’t Whistle Past Dixie Yet . . . . . . . . . . . . . .235 H. Gibbs Knotts Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .251 Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .279 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283 vi ★ Contents ...