FDR, FDR.
(The Democrats have always represented the cultural left, and the Republicans the cultural right).
What do you mean by cultural? Because supporting an end to slavery doesn't sound that conservative of the time, & remember Mr. Evangelical Bryan.
And, for God's sake, pretty much the rest of this thread is just a Democratic hack thread. "Racism"! Hah!
I know that's an oversimplification, but yes, racism is the reason the parties are the way they are. LBJ decided that he liked black people (not blah people) so he did some civil rights stuff. He became unpopular in the Democratic south for this, and it won over the Republicans of the North. The Democrats of the south were appealed to by Nixon in 1968, using the racists as a way to get elected.
Ford and Carter weren't racist, so neither party really developed. But then Republicans found someone who would not only become despised by blacks, but also become the most charismatic president in American history. Said person was very right-wing, and the Republicans followed him further and further right, with the Democrats in opposition to him.
Racism is the answer.
