Faint stirrings of life from the GOP in California
Though California does have sections that are politically conservative, the left has an iron grip on the state’s politics because of its large coastal urban areas. The state has also instituted something called the jungle primary, which means that the two top vote-getters in the primary run against each other in the general, no matter what party they belong to. In California, that almost automatically means two Democrats will be running.
It’s ironic that the jungle primary, instituted in 2010, was supposed to help the state become more competitive for independents and moderates. But that didn’t pan out; no Republican has even been on the ballot in a US Senate race in the general election since 2010.
Until this year:
This was the first time in ten years that a Republican has been on the ballot for U.S. Senate in the state of California,” Meuser told me. “We did this despite the fact that there was a Democrat who decided to put $4 million of his own money into his campaign to try to split the Democrat vote so that there’d be two Democrats and no Republicans.”…
Consequently, not only is it a rarity that a Republican even got through the Jungle Primary for U.S. Senate, but if Meuser wins in November he’ll become the first Republican senator to be elected in California since the re-election of Pete Wilson way back in 1988…
Meuser, however, was undaunted by the recent history of Republican candidates in the state. A seasoned Constitutional law attorney, business owner, and ranked Ironman triathlete, Meuser is used to a challenge. He ran a strong campaign based in part on the name recognition he built during his 2018 bid for secretary of State, which took the native Californian by bicycle to each of the 58 counties in the vast western state. His history of fighting to protect American liberties post-pandemic doesn’t hurt either.
I hope he’s really really good at bicycling uphill, though, because a Republican winning a Senate seat from California seems well-nigh impossible. If it ever were to happen, though, this would be the year.
Well, bye.
You’re clearly nobody I want to know.
Your ‘Let’s be friends’ schitck is over, Neo, nice knowing you.
I have not heard of him. I had some hopes for Shellenberger but it was not to be. I lived in Orange county for 40 years and watched it slide left. I moved to Arizona in 2017.
Joel White:
It seems the door has hit you on the backside. Hardly knew you were here. Shirley you are already mist; an unseem foul odor.
I will win $100 MILLION in the power ball or mega millions lottery before we see in Calif a republican gov, or a republican US Senator from Calif.
Actually, the star of the primary from the Republican side was Lanhee Chen who leads the state controller race by about 15 points. He is a regular on the Armstrong and Getty conservative radio talk show. I like him. He’s a little too moderate for my taste but definitely conservative.
The success of the Republicans in the primary was due in no small part to an organization called ReformCalifornia. They distributed a voter guide that was downloaded hundreds of thousands of times. The guide gave recommendations for single candidates in each position so Republicans could concentrate their vote.
They are run by Carl DeMaio, a radio talk show host but also an activist. If you go to the ReformCalifornia website, you’ll see a bunch of projects that may succeed. For example he’s circulating a petition to put a tax limit initiative on the ballot to correct the loopholes that the Democrats and their judges have been able to put in Prop 13 over the years.
Considered donating to his organization. Even if you do not live in the state, California is so large that it affects the country as a whole.
“I hope he’s really really good at bicycling uphill, though, because a Republican winning a Senate seat from California seems well-nigh impossible. If it ever were to happen, though, this would be the year.”
The primary election results give us some hope. Newsom 56% and Padilla 54% we’re not the overwhelming winners You would expect from their incumbency and name recognition advantage.
The turnout was very low, which to me indicates the Democrats are dispirited. Republicans like me will crawl over broken glass to vote. This may not be enough for statewide offices, although Lanhee Chen that I mentioned above has a chance, but it definitely gives a chance in down ballot races like the state legislature, city and County offices, school boards, and voter initiatives.
Of national importance are the 52 house seats from California. If the Republicans can make some gains there who will help them to take the house
Bob Wilson, getting some sensible people into the state legislature would be a good start.
it stands to reason, there would be eventual feedback for more sensible policies, but we shall see,
If it’s at all close, a few districts which are overwhelmingly Democrat will accidentally run short of ballots and a friendly judge will order the polls be kept open as long as necessary.
Yeah, I’m not holding my breath either.
Bob Wilson,
“Of national importance are the 52 house seats from California. If the Republicans can make some gains there who will help them to take the house.”
A simple message is always best. Something like;
“Hi, I’m __ ____ and I’m running for our US House Representative seat. My opponent supports Joe Biden’s policies. I don’t. I think Joe Biden is badly mistaken. But if you think Joe Biden’s doing a good job… then you should vote for my opponent. That way you’ll be sure to get more of the same…”
That’s a 30 second pitch.
I had not heard of Meuser until a few days before the primary when I found out he was the CA state GOP endorsee for senate. I checked his website and he didn’t seem like a flake or too GOPe so I voted for him. Plus he seems to have a bit of social media savvy. Dahle was the endorsee for governor but I couldn’t get too excited by him so I took a flyer on Shellenberger. Oh well. I wish Meuser well and he may even make some noise but he has zero chance of winning even without the inevitable Dem ballot harvesting.
Another small straw in the wind: there was a DA race where I live (Santa Clara county aka Silicon Valley) with three candidates – the incumbent, a mainstream Democrat (even though the race is technically nonpartisan); a Soros-style “deincarceration” guy (not sure if actually funded by GS but had all the earmarks); and a third seemingly fringe candidate running on a little harder law ‘n order platform who also seemed a little flaky with a personal beef against the incumbent whose office he had worked in. I voted reluctantly for the incumbent in order to keep out the “Soros” candidate, even figuring the third guy might be a plant to divide the vote in order to get the Soros guy in who I figured had a shot because this is still the ultra-liberal Bay Area after all. But the Soros guy came in last behind the “fringe” candidate who did not have much money or publicity! I was somewhat irked at my vote then because the incumbent got over 50% to avoid a runoff. At least apparently in my neck of the woods we don’t want to turn into another San Francisco. Incidentally the winner shares my last name but no relation. Definitely not why I voted for him.
It makes you wonder what was the problem that required solutio
FOAF I also live in Santa Clara county and our thought processes and conclusions were about the same. The poor performance of Khan, the Chesa Boudin wannabe, and the relatively good performance of the more conservative Chung were indeed a relief. It is a long time until November but if we get a low turn out election with higher conservative turnout like we did in the primary good things might happen.
DeMaio’s reformCalifornia has gathered over 1 million signatures, the minimum required, for the tax reduction initiative to get on the ballot. They still need money to ensure they have enough signatures over the minimum to overcome sure to come challenges. /smile