Let’s dive into a slice of history that often gets twisted in today’s debates: the founding of the Ku Klux Klan and its ties to the Democratic Party. Yes, the Democrats of the 1860s were behind the KKK’s creation, but the journey from then to now is about how both parties evolved, not some oversimplified “party switch.”
The KKK’s Origins in 1865
In the wake of the Civil War, six former Confederate soldiers—John C. Lester, John B. Kennedy, James R. Crowe, Frank O. McCord, Richard R. Reed, and J. Calvin Jones—founded the Ku Klux Klan in Pulaski, Tennessee, in 1865. Fresh from fighting for the Confederacy, which lost its bid to preserve slavery, these men started the KKK as a social club. It quickly turned into a violent, white supremacist terrorist group, targeting newly freed Black Americans, Republicans, and supporters of Reconstruction—the federal push to rebuild the South and secure rights for Black citizens.
Here’s the crux: these founders were Democrats. In the 1860s South, the Democratic Party was the stronghold of white Southerners who opposed Reconstruction, Black voting rights, and federal intervention. Republicans, meanwhile, were the party of Lincoln, the Union, and (at least on paper) racial equality, championing policies like the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. The KKK’s early members were overwhelmingly Democrats, reflecting the party’s dominance in the South and its resistance to racial change. Congressional investigations in the 1870s documented this, noting the KKK’s role in intimidating Black voters and Republicans to restore white Democratic control, often called “home rule.”
The Democratic Party’s Role in the South
During Reconstruction (1865–1877), the Democratic Party in the South was deeply tied to white supremacy. Democrats fought against Republican-led efforts like the Freedmen’s Bureau and constitutional amendments granting Black rights. The KKK, though not an official Democratic group, served as a violent ally in this cause, suppressing Black and Republican votes. In states like Mississippi and Louisiana, KKK attacks helped Democrats regain power by the late 1870s, ending Reconstruction and paving the way for Jim Crow laws—segregation policies named after a minstrel character, not KKK founder James R. Crowe, by the way.
This wasn’t hush-hush. The Southern Democratic platform openly prioritized white dominance, and many local Democratic leaders either ignored or quietly backed KKK violence. Nathan Bedford Forrest, the KKK’s first “Grand Wizard” and a Confederate general, was a Democratic delegate, showing how closely the KKK’s actions aligned with the Democratic South’s politics.
Party Evolution, Not a Switch
Some claim the Democratic and Republican parties “switched” their values, as if 1860s Democrats morphed into modern Republicans. That’s too simplistic. The Democratic Party of 1865 is the same Democratic Party of 2025 in name and organizational continuity—it never dissolved or swapped identities. But its priorities? They changed dramatically, as did the Republicans’. Here’s how it played out.
For decades, Southern Democrats enforced segregation and Jim Crow laws well into the 20th century. The Democratic Party was a broad coalition, though, including Northern workers, immigrants, and progressives who didn’t always share the South’s racial fixation. The 1930s saw early shifts with Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, which offered economic relief to Black and white Americans, drawing some Black voters to Democrats despite the party’s Southern wing clinging to segregation.
The 1960s marked a turning point, but it was a slow and messy one for Democrats. Under pressure from Black activists and the growing civil rights movement, Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson began supporting landmark legislation: the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed segregation and discrimination, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which protected Black voting rights. These laws were monumental, but they faced fierce resistance from many Democrats, especially Southerners. In the Senate, 18 of the 21 senators who voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were Democrats, including Southern stalwarts like Richard Russell and Robert Byrd. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 saw similar pushback, with 17 of 19 opposing senators being Democrats, again led by Southerners. These “Dixiecrats” filibustered, argued, and rallied to preserve segregation, showing how deeply entrenched racism remained in parts of the Democratic Party.
Despite this resistance, the bills passed, thanks to bipartisan support—Republicans like Senator Everett Dirksen played a key role in breaking Democratic filibusters to secure the Civil Rights Act. Over time, the Democratic Party’s national leadership, influenced by Northern liberals and Black voters, began to embrace civil rights more fully. This shift alienated Southern white Democrats, some of whom, like Strom Thurmond, defected to the Republicans, drawn by campaigns like Richard Nixon’s in the late 1960s, which appealed to voters wary of rapid social changes and federal overreach.
Republicans, meanwhile, gained ground in the South, attracting economic conservatives, social traditionalists, and others, but they didn’t simply adopt the old Democratic racism. The GOP continued to support civil rights in various ways, from enforcing desegregation under Republican administrations to promoting policies emphasizing individual opportunity. Both parties realigned their coalitions over time, adapting to new voters and issues, not swapping identities.
Modern Parties and the KKK: No Connection
Let’s be clear: neither the modern Democratic nor Republican Party has any tie to the KKK, a fringe hate group universally rejected by both. Today’s Democrats push voting rights, anti-discrimination laws, and equity—values at odds with the KKK’s ideology. Republicans, too, champion principles like individual liberty and equal opportunity, with leaders across the party condemning racism and hate groups. The KKK has no political influence today, and linking either party to its legacy is a rhetorical cheap shot, not history. The Democratic Party’s past includes ugly truths, but those don’t define its modern platform, just as the Republican Party’s history isn’t summed up by any one era.
Why This Matters
This history cuts through the fog. The Democratic Party was the KKK’s birthplace and the Jim Crow South’s architect, rooted in 19th-century white supremacy. Even in the 1960s, many Democrats resisted civil rights laws, showing change was gradual. But acting like that’s today’s Democrats ignores a century of transformation—activism, new voters, and shifting priorities reshaped both parties. The “party switch” myth flattens a messy story. Democrats and Republicans evolved, their voter bases realigned, but neither inherited the KKK’s mantle.
Next time someone shouts “Democrats started the KKK!” or “The parties switched!,” you can acknowledge the past while pointing to the bigger picture. The Democratic Party of 1865 is the ancestor of today’s Democrats, but it’s like comparing a telegraph to a smartphone—same lineage, entirely different function.