It’s the South. For a long time the word “Republican” was a four letter word down here because Southerners associated the GOP with Abraham Lincoln.
Now, it is obvious to everyone involved that Lincoln’s spirit now animates the Dems but on the local level many Southerners don’t see that. Obama was the spark that made them see. The old system probably would have stuck around forever if not for Obama.
Obama is quite the eye opener for a lot of people. He has become a teachable lesson for so many people, presenting compelling evidence not to vote for a Democrat again, especially one that hasn’t been fully vetted.