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Austin's settlers the Old Three Hundred made places along the Brazos River in 1822. Twenty-three other empresarios brought settlers to the state the majority of whom were from the United States the population of Texas grew rapidly in 1825 Texas had about 3,500 people with most of Mexican descent by 1834 the population had grown to about 37,800 people with only 7,800 of Mexican descent. Most of these early settlers who arrived with Austin and soon after were persons less than fortunate in life as Texas was devoid of the comforts found elsewhere in Mexico and the United States during that time Early Texas settler David B Edwards described his fellow Texans as being "banished from the pleasures of life". Tens of thousands of new migrants streamed in from rural areas straining the city's housing supply and the city's ability to provide local transit and schools For the first time high-paying jobs went to large numbers of women blacks and Hispanics the city's African-American community emboldened by their newfound prosperity increased its agitation for civil rights; they backed and funded the legal case of Smith v Allwright (1944) in which the Supreme Court ruled against the latest version of the white primary in support of voting rights. .

. The state's conservative white voters began to support Republican presidential candidates by the mid-20th century After this period they supported Republicans for local and state offices as well and most whites became Republican Party members the party also attracted some minorities but many have continued to vote for Democratic candidates the shift to the Republican Party is much-attributed to the fact that the Democratic Party became increasingly liberal during the 20th century and thus increasingly out-of-touch with the average Texas voter as Texas was always a conservative state voters switched to the GOP which now more closely reflected their beliefs. Commentators have also attributed the shift to Republican political consultant Karl Rove who managed numerous political campaigns in Texas in the 1980s and 90s. Other stated reasons included court-ordered redistricting and the demographic shift in relation to the Sun Belt that favored the Republican Party and conservatism! . .