According to a new NPR report, the state of Texas is becoming a haven for conservatives looking to flee their more liberal states.
The story chronicles the account of a man named Tim Stokes, who, although having only purchased his home in California just a little over a year ago, is planning on uprooting his family and moving to a more conservative part of the United States.
Stokes told NPR that until about six years ago, moving his family would've been "unthinkable." But now, he says that as a Republican he has found the "seemingly unstoppable" leftward swing of California's political climate to be "unbearable."
Stokes claims that he feels like an outsider in his hometown and has been a regular voter who has voted against several left-leaning proposals in California, including voicing his opposition to an increase in the gas tax, legalization of marijuana, and the release of some nonviolent criminals in an effort to quell overcrowding in prisons.
Much to Stokes' chagrin, all those initiatives passed in California, leaving him feeling like his political ideology is being overshadowed by an overwhelmingly liberal majority. This outcasted feeling fueled his decision to move his family to Texas, where he believes his family will finally enjoy a place in which the majority of residents share his views.
The Stokes family's migration adds to an already immense departure of conservatives from liberal states to Texas. According to the Office of the State Demographer of Texas, population projections estimate that up to 20 million more people could be moving to the Lone Star State by 2050.
The human flood has been so great, in fact, that organizations have popped up to deal with the massive population boom, like Conservative Move, whose motto is "Helping families move Right." Started up by a 42-year-old Republican named Paul Chabot, who twice failed to win a seat in Congress, the organization helps families looking to change their setting to a more conservative home.
Thank you for supporting MRCTV! As a tax-deductible, charitable organization, we rely on the support of our readers to keep us running! Keep MRCTV going with your gift here!