Boll weevil (politics)

Boll weevil (named for the type of beetle which feeds on cotton buds) was an American political term used in the mid-to-late 20th century to refer to groupings of conservative Democrats, particularly Southern Democrats who sided with Republican policy priorities.

They represented a persistent, disruptive force that undermined Democratic leadership and this pejorative label characterized this bloc as pests that destroyed a healthy organism "from within".