The West Virginia lawmaker comes from an area of the state that used to be solidly blue — voters sent a Democrat to his seat in the state House for 24 straight years. But attitudes in his district have recently swung towards Republicans, credited largely to the decline of coal and anger over environmental restrictions.
So Pritt abandoned the Democratic Party and registered as a Republican in April. He was motivated by a desire to more effectively represent his constituents and take advantage of the opportunities enjoyed by Republicans who wield supermajority control in the state Legislature.
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Pritt and Jeffries’ switches had little consequence for the balance of power in the West Virginia state legislature, given Republicans’ mile-wide margins. But in other states that saw allegiance flips, it had huge bearing on what legislation passed.
Most notably, North Carolina Rep. Tricia Cotham’s move to the GOP handed Republicans supermajority control, allowing them to enact conservative goals like a 12-week ban on most abortions. Republicans’ dominance of the state legislature allowed them to bypass Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who vetoed top Republican priorities.
A long time Democrat from a blue area near Charlotte, Cotham supported other conservative measures after her swap, like a ban on gender-affirming care for minors and expanded eligibility for private school vouchers.
Cotham, who returned to the statehouse after working as a lobbyist for several years, said at a press conference announcing her decision that the Democratic Party has “become unrecognizable” and prioritizes the political process over continuing its reputation as a “big tent” party. She said she felt shunned by members of the Democratic caucus.
Cotham’s change of party enraged Democrats in her district and throughout the state, likely setting herself up for a bitter primary challenge. Democratic leaders called for Cotham to resign. A petition seeking her resignation launched by a Democratic nonprofit in June says it has collected over 7,000 signatures.
“This is deceit of the highest order,” said North Carolina Party Chair Anderson Clayton and Mecklenburg County Democratic Party Chair Jane Whitley in a joint statement. “Rep. Cotham’s decision is a betrayal to the people of HD-112 with repercussions not only for the people of her district, but for the entire state of North Carolina.”
In Louisiana, Rep. Francis Thompson, who served as a Democrat for nearly 50 years, became a Republican in March. That gave Republicans supermajority control in another chamber and the ability to override vetoes from Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards.
Thompson insisted in a statement at the time that “nothing has changed” because of his decision, noting his “conservative record” that “speaks for itself.” Thompson joined Republicans last year to override Edwards’ veto of a congressional redistricting bill — the first time in over three decades such a move occurred.
A few weeks after Thompson’s announcement, a second Democratic lawmaker in Louisiana — Rep. Jeremy LaCombe — swapped parties, delivering the latest punch to the Democratic Party in the South.
Then there’s Georgia Rep. Mesha Mainor, another Democrat who became a registered Republican last month. Mainor’s switch to the GOP makes her the only Black lawmaker among Republican legislators in the state.
Her move was partly motivated by Republicans’ support of her efforts to create a workforce development authority in Black communities and support HBCUs. Leading up to the switch, Mainor voted with Republicans on school vouchers and greater prosecutorial oversight. Democrats, meanwhile, “tried to tear down” her work to help Black communities, Mainor said in an interview. She criticized Democrats in the South for not delivering electoral results or looking out for the interests of people of color.
Changing parties is a complicated issue, said Mainor, who expressed confidence about her ability to be reelected, even though she represents a heavily Democratic district in Atlanta with a large Black population.
“It’s heavily related to one’s sense of self-respect, experiences and professionalism,” she said. “If an elected official cares about policy, the party is irrelevant. The policy legislator wants to be in the party they see trying to push the policies that favorably impact the people they represent.”
In some cases, lawmakers say they’ve reaped immediate dividends by changing political affiliations.
In the three months since Pritt traded in his Democratic Party credentials, he’s noticed one major change: his calls to state agencies are returned, something that he said didn’t happen when he ran with a “D” next to his name on the ballot.