Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

signal status listen live donate
listen live donate signal status
listen live donate signal status
  • News
    • topics
    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
  • Music
    • genres
    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic
    • Daily Playlist
  • Programs + Podcasts
    • news
    • Morning Edition
    • All Things Considered
    • Marketplace
    • Insight With Vicki Gonzalez
    • music
    • Acid Jazz
    • At the Opera
    • Classical Music
    • Connections
    • Excellence in Jazz
    • Hey, Listen!
    • K-ZAP on CapRadio
    • Mick Martin's Blues Party
    • Programs A-Z
    • Podcast Directory
  • Schedules
    • News
    • Music
    • ClassicalStream
    • JazzStream
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Daily Playlist
  • Community
    • Events Calendar
    • CapRadio Garden
    • CapRadio Reads
    • Ticket Giveaways
  • Support
    • Evergreen Gift
    • One-Time Gift
    • Corporate Support
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Gift
    • Legacy Gift
    • Endowment Gift
    • Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • e‑Newsletter
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
  • State Government
  •  

‘Never Trump’ Republicans Weigh Whether To Start New Political Party In California

  •  Ben Adler 
Monday, November 26, 2018 | Sacramento, CA
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
Katie Orr, Capital Public Radio

Assembly Minority Leader Kristin Olsen speaks to the Sacramento Press Club on Thursday, March 12, 2015.

Katie Orr, Capital Public Radio

The California Republican Party is facing an existential crisis after Democrats throttled the GOP in the midterm election. Now, some prominent “Never Trump” Republicans are actively debating whether to start a new political party.

“I think it’s yet to be seen whether it’s a rebuilding of a Republican Party or whether it’s a new party,” former Assembly Republican Leader and California GOP vice-chair Kristin Olsen told Capital Public Radio last week. “The jury’s still out on that.”

Democrats swept all of California’s statewide offices and knocked Republican incumbents out of Congress and the state Legislature. In doing so, Democrats reduced the GOP to just seven or eight of California’s 53 House seats, with one congressional race still too-close-to-call. They also regained the supermajority they lost in the state Senate after the June recall election of Democratic Sen. Josh Newman, and expanded their supermajority in the state Assembly.

No statewide GOP candidate finished with even 40 percent of the vote.

Olsen says the California GOP was already in trouble. Now, thanks to President Trump, she argues it’s practically extinct.

“I believe it’s not only toxic, but it’s dead in California. And I believe that death had to occur if there’s any opportunity to revive a viable Republican Party in the future for our state,” Olsen said.

Listen to Olsen’s interview with NPR’s Audie Cornish on All Things Considered

If not, she added, “then we do need to look at whether it’s possible to create a third party.”

Olsen sits on the board of New Way California, one of many groups weighing the GOP’s future in the state. She acknowledges that previous efforts to start a third party have repeatedly failed.

“I think the opportunity here is, we’re at a unique time in history where people are hungry for something different than the two disparate parties are providing,” she said. “And two, if it can be broader than any one individual or one particular issue.”

Olsen says New Way is conducting research, focus groups and data discovery to see if a third party could be viable in California.

Another New Way board member, Republican consultant Cassandra Pye, says California needs checks and balances to prevent Democrats from overreaching.

“It would take a lot for me to leave the GOP and at the moment there’s no viable alternative,” she said. “But I am keeping active watch.”

But one prominent Republican on the New Way board might not be ready to leave the party.

“I’m not leaving,” former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger posted on Reddit back in early July. “I choose to stay and fight.”

Schwarzenegger wrote that his party is “going through a wacky period,” but that he’ll work to change the GOP from within.

“If somebody breaks into your house and eats all of your food, you don’t just move out and leave them the house. You reclaim it,” he said. “And believe me, there will be a reclaiming.”

As for that existing “Grand Old Party”?

“As [California GOP] Chairman [Jim] Brulte has stated many times,” said California Republican Party spokesman Matt Fleming, “any group that wants to elect more Republicans is good with us.”


Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

Ben Adler

Director of Programming and Audience Development

Director of Programming and Audience Development Ben Adler first became a public radio listener in the car on his way to preschool — though not necessarily by choice.  Read Full Bio 

Sign up for ReCap and never miss the top stories

Delivered to your inbox every Friday.

 

Check out a sample ReCap newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

Thank you for signing up for the ReCap newsletter! We'll send you an email each Friday with the top stories from CapRadio.

Browse all newsletters

More State Government Stories

Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters

Thousands of Californians in limbo as eviction protections end

July 2, 2022

AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

Let’s make a deal: What to know about the California budget

June 29, 2022

AP Photo/Haven Daley

California’s change to concealed carry permits would reduce wide variations among counties

June 30, 2022

Most Viewed

One dead, 4 injured in Downtown Sacramento shooting

Abortion is still legal in California. Here are answers to questions about access in the state.

California coronavirus updates: COVID-19 cases are increasing globally

Downtown Sacramento shooting: What we know and latest updates

Northern California wildfires: Where to find updates on air quality, evacuations, and official information

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Most Viewed

One dead, 4 injured in Downtown Sacramento shooting

Abortion is still legal in California. Here are answers to questions about access in the state.

California coronavirus updates: COVID-19 cases are increasing globally

Downtown Sacramento shooting: What we know and latest updates

Northern California wildfires: Where to find updates on air quality, evacuations, and official information

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    • (916) 278-8900
    • Toll-free (877) 480-5900
    • Email Us
    • Submit a News Tip
  • Contact Us

  • About Us

    • Contact Us / Feedback
    • Coverage
    • Directions
    • Careers & Internships
    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Press
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile App
    • On Air Schedules
    • Smart Speakers
    • Playlist
    • Podcasts
    • RSS
  • Connect With Us

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2022, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.