What if the GOP told the South to get lost?

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

How is this supposed to work? What might Southerners that have largely conservative beliefs but might not be racist do? And it's not like Democrats are competing for the Southern white racist demographic in the first place.

Indeed, the racists are either not going to vote default for the GOP when they do turnout. So it is fail strategy. What will happen is NC, VA and FL become solid Democratic. MS and GA turn Democratic as well. Thats about it.