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{{cquote|...guilty of no wrong doing, directly or indirectly.}}

{{cquote|...guilty of no wrong doing, directly or indirectly.}}

The faction led by Howard was later challenged by [[Wirt Yerger|Wirt A. Yerger, Jr.]],<ref name=yerger>Mott, Ronni (May 12, 2009). [https://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2009/may/12/yergers-revisionist-lily-white-history/ Yerger's Revisionist ‘Lily White' History]. ''Jackson Free Press''. Retrieved October 15, 2021.</ref> who led a coalition of businessmen and entrepreneurs in Mississippi who rebuilt the state GOP and established what became a two-party system. Although Yerger opposed the [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]], his efforts directly challenged the [[Jim Crow]] Democrat system by appealing to economic mobility rather than emphasizing race, and had been previously harassed by [[segregation]]ists.<ref name=yerger/>

The faction led by Howard was later challenged by [[Wirt Yerger|Wirt A. Yerger, Jr.]],<ref name=yerger>Mott, Ronni (May 12, 2009). [https://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2009/may/12/yergers-revisionist-lily-white-history/ Yerger's Revisionist ‘Lily White' History]. ''Jackson Free Press''. Retrieved October 15, 2021.</ref> who led a coalition of businessmen and entrepreneurs in Mississippi who rebuilt the state GOP and established what became a two-party system. Although Yerger opposed the [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]], his efforts directly challenged the statewide [[Jim Crow]] Democrat establishment by appealing to economic mobility rather than emphasizing race. Yerger and his family were also harassed by [[segregation]]ists in 1957 amidst the Little Rock Crisis.<ref name=yerger/>

[[File:Robert A. taft painting.jpg|thumb|right|220px|The Howard-led Mississippi GOP delegation in 1952 supported Robert Taft (pictured above) for president.]]

[[File:Robert A. taft painting.jpg|thumb|right|220px|The Howard-led Mississippi GOP delegation in 1952 supported Robert Taft (pictured above) for president.]]