[ad_1]
Orange County, California, was essentially white and republican for decades. Its increasing diversity has loosened the grip of the GOP, and Democrats want to take advantage of it in November. (October 17)
AP
Gil Cisneros overcame a deficit of nearly 3,900 votes the night of the election to win the race at the 39th congressional seat of California.(Photo: Mark Ralston / AFP)
Somewhere, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon and John Wayne are wondering what happened to the place that they usually called home.
When Gil Cisneros was declared the winner of the race in the House of Representatives of California's 39th congressional district on Saturday night, Democrats completed a historic sweep of the seven districts of Orange County, until recently considered a fiefdom of conservatism.
The area south of Los Angeles had long been known as Reagan. The conservative icon said "where all good republicans will die".
The largely suburban county, with a population of 3.2 million, was the birthplace of Nixon and the site of his presidential library.
Its airport is named after Wayne, the legendary Republican film cowboy declared and renowned.
And now, he will send seven Democrats to the American House, toppling them four seats and helping them take control of a Republican-controlled legislative chamber since 2011.
Democrats needed a net gain of 23 seats to reach the majority in the House. They added 38, bringing their lead to 232-200, with three races to be determined. In California, the Democratic advantage is 45-8.
The Democrats had targeted seven Republican-occupied seats in California, won by Hillary Clinton in 2016. They claimed six, capitalizing on President Trump's unpopularity in that state and attacking the incumbents who had voted for it. 39; repeal of the Affordable Care Act and / or for the 2017 bill., Which limited deductions in states with high tax rates like California.
More: Win by losing? Beto O 'Rourke, Stacey Abrams, Andrew Gillum may still be rising voices
More: Recount in Florida: Senator Bill Nelson concedes the following manual recount; Rick Scott in the Senate
Cisneros topped the young Republican Kim after getting nearly 3,900 votes on election day to join Harley Rouda, Katie Porter and Mike Levin as Democratic newcomers to the Orange County House.
The victory of Rouda is particularly remarkable: he defeated Dana Rohrabacher, holder of 15 mandates Republicans.
"In one of the most diverse districts in the country, I've learned that, despite our differences, we all care about the same thing," said Cisneros, a Navy veteran turned philanthropist who has won a jackpot of lottery of $ 266 million in 2010. has put emphasis on education in its campaign.
"Above all, we want to live in a world created by hope and not by hatred."
His remarks and the county vote seemed to represent a repudiation of Trump and his harsh rhetoric, particularly in immigration matters. Latinos represent 35% of the population of Orange County and Asians 21%. Non-Hispanic whites make up 40%.
The country's increasingly diversified demographics and the evolution of politics over the last two decades have allowed Democrats to break through enough to be able to enter the election with three outgoing candidates – Linda Sanchez, Lou Correa and Alan Lowenthal – all winners to madness – their delegation.
But given the history of the region, not even the most optimistic Democrats could have expected a sweep. This is the first time since the 1930s that the GOP stronghold no longer has a Republican presence in the House.
"It's a sign to me that things are going south for the Republicans and that they will not change their way of doing things, they will go further south," Los Angeles Times Times Stuart Spencer, GOP strategist from long time. "This election sounded the death knell for the Republican Party in California."
Read or share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2018/11/18/california-democrats-sweep-house-seats-orange-county/2048696002/
Source link
