Travis Allen addresses delegates at the GOP state convention in Sacramento on Feb. 23. (Photo: Steve Yeater/Associated Press)If the Republican Party wants to make a comeback in California, it’s going to have to stand up against voter fraud and stick to its principles, according to an unscientific sampling of party stalwarts, many of them angry, at the weekend’s GOP state convention in Sacramento.
Close-up of a vintage California Republican Party buttonIn the wake of declining registration numbers and a devastating election in November, California Republicans are searching for a path back to relevance. Many Latino Republicans have voiced strong opposition to the GOP’s current direction, decrying the nationalist-leaning “Trump Wing” of the Party that has embraced loaded racial rhetoric and calls for a wall between California and Mexico.
Crowded housing on a San Francisco hillside. (Photo: Radislav Leyck)The housing crisis — “debacle” might be a better way of putting it — has no quick or easy solution. For decades, housing production has not kept up with population growth in California, leaving Californians to struggle with soaring bills, longer commutes and more people living under one roof.
People at a 2016 political rally in Anaheim for Republican presidential contender Donald Trump. (Photo: mikeledray, via Shutterstock) Throughout the 2016 election cycle, Capitol Weekly conducted several polls. Two of them, one during the primary and the other during the general, were targeted to voters right after they had mailed in their ballots. In total, more than 80,000 Californians participated in these surveys. Now, we’ve gone back asked these voters how they feel about the candidates they backed and about the issues, and we sought their perceptions about the political climate. We’ll start with the Trump voters.
Mayor Kevin Faulconer at a political rally in San Diego. (Photo: AP/Lenny Ignelzi)California Republicans don’t have a deep statewide bench. But they may have a rising star in San Diego — Mayor Kevin Faulconer. “He would be a very compelling candidate for statewide office if he ever chose to run,” said state GOP Chairman Jim Brulte, who led Republicans in both houses of the Legislature. Faulconer, who came to power in the wake of the scandal-plagued administration of Democrat Bob Filner, has ruled out running for governor in 2018.
GOP Chair Jim Brulte at the recent state Republican convention in Burlingame. (Photo: Dorothy Mills-GreggJim Brulte, head of the state GOP for the past three years, will be permitted to run for the party’s top job for two additional terms, following the party’s decision to extend his term limits.
Latinos protesting Donald Trump at an entrance to the site of the state GOP convention in Burlingame. (Photo: Alex Matthews, Capitol Weekly)For Latino voters in California, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s anti-immigration pronouncements present a dilemma. But for Latino Republicans, the challenge is especially difficult.
A group of young Republicans meet at the state GOP convention.Photo: Serla Rusli)There are divisions within the California Republican Party, and nowhere are they more apparent than among the party’s youngest members. Capitol Weekly spoke to young Republicans on the state GOP convention last weekend in Burlingame. Groups from the Bay Area and Southern California were represented, as well as young Republicans working on campaigns.
Republican presidential contender Ted Cruz at the California GOP convention. (Photo: Jeff Chiu/Associated Press)At the top of the glistening white staircase leading to the hotel mezzanine, the amiable, white-haired activist was handing out “Cruz for President” stickers. “I’ve been scoffed at and scorned,” he said. “It was fun.”
A presidential campaign event at the Oxnard train station during an earlier election. (Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock) Brace yourselves, Californians. The violent, vicious and volatile Republican political campaigns that have destroyed civility across parts of the South and Midwest are increasingly likely to cross the Sierra and spread vitriol in the Golden State.