He campaigned in rural areas disenfranchised by the state's political establishment, the "Old Regulars". Since the 1877 end of Republican-controlled Reconstruction government, they had controlled most of the state through alliances with local officials. With negligible support for Republicans, Louisiana was essentially a one-party state under the Democratic Old Regulars. Holding mock elections in which they invoked the Lost Cause of the Confederacy, the Old Regulars presided over a corrupt government that largely benefited the planter class. Consequently, Louisiana was one of the least developed states: It had just 300 miles of cement roads and the lowest literacy rate.