As economic and social conditions worsen under Democrat policies, Republicans see ‘opportunity’ to welcome Dems, no-party-preference voters.
ANAHEIM, Calif.—After hearing former President Donald Trump describe their state’s Leftist-induced woes—and his resolve to reverse them—California Republicans said they feel new optimism in this Democrat stronghold.
If circumstances worsen, more Democrats and voters with “no party preference” might consider casting ballots for the Republican former president to ease their pain, several attendees at the California GOP (CAGOP) Fall Convention told The Epoch Times.
“He’s giving us hope that we can be a ‘Golden State’ again,” said Shelley Freeman, who was among more than 1,500 people who paid $500–$600 apiece to hear President Trump speak at a luncheon Sept. 29, the first day of the three-day convention at the Anaheim Marriott Hotel.
But ensuring a fair election poses a big concern here, attendees said. So does getting Democrats or “Never Trumpers” to open their eyes to the former president’s proposal for a return to law and order.
“They wear what I call the ‘I-Hate-Trump’ glasses,” said conventioneer Joan Riebli. “But if you take them off for just a second, things start to look totally different.”
Ron Edwards, a conventioneer who lives near San Francisco, told The Epoch Times that the next election could be largely decided based on “inflation and the pain that the working men and women feel when they mark their ballots.” He says President Trump’s pledge to impose law and order “is a true need that we have in America that transcends party.”
Comedic Relief
President Trump seems to understand that, in California, sometimes derisively labeled, “the Left Coast,” environmental and social policies have become entrenched and are wreaking havoc on people’s daily lives worse than in other states, attendees told The Epoch Times.
“While California was once a symbol of success, today, under the radical Left fascists that run your state, it is becoming a symbol of our nation’s decline,” President Trump said. He also declared: “This is a state that the right Republican can win and actually win easily.”
By Janice Hisle
