Ex-California GOP leader: State party ‘isn’t salvageable at this time’

A former California Republican leader penned an op-ed Tuesday declaring that that the state’s GOP “isn’t salvageable” in its current form in the wake of sweeping midterm losses.

Kristin Olson, who served as the state’s GOP vice chair in 2017 and previously led the Republicans in the state assembly, wrote for CalMatters that the party has “failed to separate itself from today’s toxic, national brand of Republican politics.”

She said that the issues for the state party manifested themselves in last week’s midterm elections, where Democrats flipped several long-held GOP seats in California.

{mosads}”While the rest of the nation saw a mix of Republican and Democrat victories, we in California experienced a blue tsunami,” Olson wrote. “It looks as if Democrats will win nearly every target seat, including some in districts that have been historically considered ‘safe’ for Republicans.”

Olson argued that Republicans must put forward leaders who understand “that words matter” and who are willing to look past partisan lines to find solutions.

“For Republicans, the first step is to acknowledge that we have a serious internal problem,” she wrote. “Ignoring the toxicity is not enough, as California’s election results demonstrate. We must call it out and model a different and better way because that’s what our fellow Californians deserve.”

Rep. Jeff Denham’s (R) loss in a Central Valley district brings the total of California GOP defeats in the House to four, with two other races still too close to call. Separately, Democrat Gavin Newsom coasted to a victory over Republican John Cox, while Democrats won supermajorities in the legislature.

Republicans have also not been competitive in races for the Senate, and Hillary Clinton cruised to a victory of Donald Trump in the last presidential election.