?The 1968 republican primaries: Richard Nixon and the modernization of Southern Conservatism

Abstract

Ever after the campaign of 1968, most accounts describe the relationship between Richard Nixon and the conservative South as one based upon Nixon’s shift to the right or «southernisation» of himself, his campaign, his administration and, ultimately, of national politics to achieve electoral success. This article proposes that this relationship was considerably more complex and rested, ultimately, in precisely the opposite phenomenon: the «northernisation», or increasing relative moderation of the conservative southern Republicans. Thus, in 1968 Nixon did not actually approached the southerners. They approached him. This is a new insight into the strategies pursued by American conservatives to overcome marginalisation and penetrate mainstream politics.