What was the most important part of the Southern strategy?

 The most important part of the Southern Strategy was the political tactic of the Republican Party to increase political support among white voters in the South by appealing to racism against African Americans. As the Civil Rights Movement gained momentum and dismantled Jim Crow laws, many white Southern voters who traditionally supported the Democratic Party became disenchanted with the Democrats' civil rights agenda.

Richard Nixon's campaign capitalized on this discontent with what it perceived as a soft stance on crime and a push for social changes that were not widely accepted by all constituents. The Southern Strategy, therefore, emphasized states' rights, law and order, and a slower approach to integration. This approach was aimed at attracting conservative white Southerners who might have felt alienated by the Democratic Party’s civil rights platform.