November 6, 2009 • 10:49 pm
It’s official: the Republican Party is back.
Certainly the highest profile victories this week were the governor’s races in Virginia and New Jersey: huge wins for our team, particularly New Jersey, an overwhelmingly Democrat state where the incumbent seeking re-election was defeated.
Meanwhile, the margin in the Virginia governor’s race reached landslide proportions. Our party also scored victories that were overshadowed by the governor’s races, such as electing a Republican to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
Here in California, John Garamendi’s margin in the liberal 10th district was barely half of the Democratic registration advantage. For the incumbent Lieutenant Governor of the state to be held to a 10-point win in an 18-point Democrat district in Nancy Pelosi’s back yard is another sign of Democrat weakness in 2009. In addition, Garamendi’s relentless attacks on Republican David Harmer in the closing days of the campaign showed just how concerned they were in a district Barack Obama won by 31 points. Special thanks to Tom Del Beccaro for his tireless, day-in-day-out work to support David Harmer and his campaign. The volunteer turnout was extraordinary and made the race a competitive one.
We’re tracking victories that took place at the local level in California. For example, we won a Republican majority in the city that’s home to the San Mateo County seat (Redwood City), defeated tax increases in Ventura County, and more.
REPUBLICAN SELF-IDENTIFICATION ON THE RISE. Our voter registration initiative is key to taking advantage of these rising Republican fortunes. With more than 50 Republican groups signed up for our program we’re moving ahead aggressively with voter registration. Timing here is crucial. Republican self-identification has risen substantially since January, and we want to take advantage of that trend.
LOOKING TO 2010. Next year’s campaign will be dominated by two marquee races in California: Governor and U.S. Senate.
In the governor’s race, it’s ironic that the party that likes to lecture everyone about diversity is down to just one candidate for governor, and he has not even declared.
Our Republican candidates will no doubt be focused on winning the nomination in June. As a result, we will take on the role of talking about Jerry Brown’s record of failure from the last time he was let near the governor’s office. We have excellent candidates seeking our party’s nomination and we’re looking forward to teaming up with the ultimate nominee to deliver victory for California in November.
In the U.S. Senate race, as of this week we have a contested Republican primary there and we will similarly keep the heat on Barbara Boxer, who continues to show she is no Dianne Feinstein. She is deeply divisive and in an extraordinarily weak position for an 18-year incumbent seeking re-election. We have very strong and capable Republicans seeking our U.S. Senate nomination and we will keep the pressure on Barbara Boxer all the way through next November.
More developments…
- I traveled to Los Angeles Thursday night for dinner with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Republican donors. We discussed the emerging opportunities for our party in 2010, as well as the serious problems the Obama Administration is experiencing in trying to enact its agenda.
- Early Saturday morning I met with volunteers and David Harmer at his headquarters in Walnut Creek. The hard work by thousands of volunteers and the well run Harmer campaign made this House race a competitive one, right in Nancy Pelosi’s back yard.
Later that day I joined San Mateo County Chairman Michael Schwab, donors and local elected officials for a dinner to discuss today’s rapidly changing political environment and plans for expanding our party’s reach in the Bay Area.
- Tuesday night I joined the Republican Party of Orange County in Costa Mesa to watch the returns come in. After the polls closed, I discussed the results on the Kevin James radio show on KRLA in Los Angeles, reviewing how these victories help set the table Republican advancements in 2010.
- On Wednesday morning we briefed our Golden State Leadership Team donors with a briefing conference call, updating them on the final results of the November 3 elections, and reviewing all the leading political indicators and how they are all favoring our team.
Later that day I was joined by Assemblywoman Diane Harkey as we recorded this week’s CRP podcast. In just a few weeks the new CRP podcast has drawn a substantial number of subscribers through iTunes and is a common download on our website, underscoring the importance of this new media.
As always, I’d like to hear from you. What are you hearing? What are we doing well? What do we need to improve? Send me an email. Your feedback is very important.
Thank you very much for your leadership and contributions to victory.
All the best,
Ron Nehring
CHAIRMAN, California Republican Party
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CRP NEWSROOM
CRP Statement Concerning Gavin Newsom Dropping Out of the California Governor’s Race
“Instead of having two far left candidates competing for their nomination, the state’s self-proclaimed party of diversity now has just one. Today’s announcement by Mayor Newsom has little impact beyond the irony that the party that likes to lecture everyone about diversity is down to just one candidate for governor in an open seat election 7 months before the primary.“
CRP Statement – Boxer: Too Little Too Late
“Barbara Boxer isn’t fooling anyone one with her sudden interest in small business. Today’s media stunt is no exception. The fact is that her record on taxpayer protection and small business policy is dismal at best.“
Statement from NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions on California’s Election Results
“I commend David Harmer for the tireless and valiant effort he demonstrated throughout this campaign. David Harmer performed better than any Republican has performed in this district in nearly 10 years.”
GOP sweep: Big governor victories in Virginia, NJ
Governor Schwarzenegger: Celebrates Opening of EVI Worldwide Headquarters in Stockton
Cantor: On the Road Ahead and Republican Health Care Reform
Boehner: GOP Plan Lowers Costs, Increases Access to Quality Health Care For All Americans
McConnell: A ‘Worrisome Trend’
RNC: Election, Rejection, Dejection
RNC: What They’re Saying … About The GOP’s Election Night Victories
RNC: What They’re Saying … About Bob McDonnell’s Victory In Virginia
RNC: What They’re Saying … About Chris Christie’s Victory In New Jersey
MUST READS OF THE WEEK
Fred Barnes - Recovery. By electing governors of Virginia and New Jersey, Republicans have demonstrated that two trends suggested in recent opinion polls are for real. The first is that Republicans have pulled off a remarkable comeback after disastrous election defeats in 2006 and 2008. The second is that they now have a realistic shot at capturing the House and gaining Senate seats in the 2010 midterm election.
Karl Rove - Tuesday’s Suburban Vote Swing. Tuesday’s elections should put a scare into red state Democrats-and a few blue state ones, too. Barack Obama was said to have redrawn the electoral map by winning Virginia last year with 53% of the vote. On Tuesday, Republican Bob McDonnell flipped the state back to the GOP, winning his election for governor with 59% of the vote. Mr. Obama carried New Jersey easily last year with 57% of the vote. This year, despite being outspent 3-to-1, Republican Chris Christie ousted Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine there by 49% to 45%. Mr. Obama carried Pennsylvania last year by 10 points. On Tuesday, Republican Judge Joan Orie Melvin was elected to the state’s Supreme Court by 53% to 47%, leading a GOP sweep of six of seven statewide contests.
Charles Krauthammer - The Three Envelopes. In the Barack Obama version, there are 50 or so such blame-Bush free passes before the gig is up. By my calculation, Obama has already burned through a good 49. Is there anything he hasn’t blamed George W. Bush for? The economy, global warming, the credit crisis, Middle East stalemate, the deficit, anti-Americanism abroad — everything but swine flu.
More news:
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TAKE ACTION
 20th ANNIVERSARY OF THE FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL. Join the California Republican Party’s initiative to commemorate victory in the Cold War and President Ronald Reagan’s Leadership by holding an event leading up to or during the week of November 9.
The CRP will provide each group participating in the program with a phone number for a conference call led by Michael Reagan live from Berlin, a special event DVD from the Reagan library, and an event packet.
REPUBLICAN VOTER REGISTRATION PROGRAM LAUNCHED. Republican clubs, county committees and candidate campaigns are invited to participate in the CRP’s new statewide voter registration initiative. Complete information and sign up form online.
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DATA CENTER
October Polling Gives Obama Net Negative Economic Approval. Resurgent Republic. Exit polls in Virginia and New Jersey reiterated this week that the economy is the top concern of voters, and so Americans will pay close attention to the October jobs report released tomorrow. We know already that October brought another important data point: for the first time in his presidency more Americans on average disapprove (48.2%) of President Obama’s economic job performance than approve (44.8%), according to an average of all public surveys by Pollster.com. In summary, President Obama has gone upside down on the economy.
Will Federal Health Legislation Cause the Deficit to Soar? The Cato Institute. The health care plan approved by the Senate Finance Committee is supposed to reduce budget deficits over 10 years by $81 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office.1 Similarly, the House version of health legislation would reduce 10-year deficits by $104 billion, according to the CBO.2 Supporters of these health care proposals thus argue that the plans are fiscally responsible.
Also…
In U.S., Majority Now Say Obama’s Policies “Mostly Liberal” Gallup
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CRP PODCAST
 The Right News from the Left Coast It was a good night for the Republican Party – 11/3 election results, analysis and commentary. What are the trends and what do they mean for the GOP moving forward? A close look at the upcoming Governor and Senate races in California. AG Jerry Brown Running unopposed leaving the Republicans to compete in a spirited primary. Sen. Boxer looks vulnerable in the Senate race leaving the door open for Chuck DeVore and Carly Fiorina. Co-hosts: Republican Party Chairman Ron Nehring and Assemblywoman Diane Harkey. Recorded 11/4/09. Length: 31 minutes. Get it on iTunes
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Filed under: News , California, California GOP, California Republican Party, California Republican Party Chairman Ron Nehring, California State Government, Republican, Republican Party, Republican Party of Riverside County, Republican Party of San Bernardino County, Riverside, Riverside County, Riverside GOP, Sacramento, State of California
