During the 2024 United States presidential election, conservative figures successfully repackaged demographic fears into democratic alarms to broaden their mainstream appeal. By framing immigration as a purposeful strategy to manipulate elections, political campaigns normalized extremist narratives under the guise of protecting the voting process. These observations were published in a recent study in the journal PS: Political Science & Politics. Researchers have tracked a narrative known as the Great Replacement within conservative media ecosystems for years. The phrase gained modern popularity from a 2011 book by French literary theorist Renaud Camus. However, the core anxieties fueling this theory possess a long history in American electoral politics. Historic examples noted by researchers include late nineteenth century panics over a perceived Chinese invasion. Similarly, politicians in the early twentieth century fomented fear regarding a sudden flood of Southern European immigrants. The modern replacement narrative relies on four central assumptions. It suggests that a nation is experiencing immense population changes, and that these shifts are not occurring by accident. Instead, the theory claims these changes reflect a conscious …