<sod>Many conservative Southern Democrats defected to the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]], beginning with the passage of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] and the general leftward shift of the party. [[Strom Thurmond]] of [[South Carolina]], [[Billy Tauzin]] of [[Louisiana]], [[Kent Hance]] and [[Ralph Hall]] of [[Texas]], and [[Richard Shelby]] of [[Alabama]] are examples of this. The influx of conservative Democrats into the Republican Party is often cited as a reason for the GOP's shift further to the right during the late 20th century, as well as the shift of its base from the Northeast and Midwest to the South.<eod>
<sod>Many conservative Southern Democrats defected to the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]], beginning with the passage of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] and the general leftward shift of the party. {{Citation needed}}{{POV statement}}  [[Strom Thurmond]] of [[South Carolina]], [[Billy Tauzin]] of [[Louisiana]], [[Kent Hance]] and [[Ralph Hall]] of [[Texas]], and [[Richard Shelby]] of [[Alabama]] are examples of this. {{Citation needed}} The influx of conservative Democrats into the Republican Party is often cited as a reason for the GOP's shift further to the right during the late 20th century, as well as the shift of its base from the Northeast and Midwest to the South. {{Citation needed}}<eod>