Final answer:
The statement is false; Southern redeemers did not wish to preserve Republican rule but sought to reclaim power and promote white supremacy.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement "Southern redeemers hoped to preserve Republican rule in the South" is false. Southern redeemers were a political coalition in the southern United States during the Reconstruction era, which sought to oust the Republican coalition of freedmen, carpetbaggers, and scalawags.
They aimed to regain political power and enforce white supremacy, often through means such as voter intimidation and violence. Their goals were directly opposed to the Republican rule that was in place during Reconstruction post-Civil War.