.Next in our continuing "50 Best" series, and with much anticipation, we honor the hugely-important Golden State of California. Unlike the previous honoree Arkansas, which is rather new to the GOP brand after generations of reflexive Democrat voting, Cali offers numerous impressive GOP stories over the last 50 years. No doubt some of the potential honorable mentions would tower over the best representative in many of the smaller, less politically important states of the Union. But we're talking the massive state of Cali-freaking-fornia here. Over the last 50 years, the state has given the nation, on the Republican side alone, two future Presidents, 4 governors (all elected to multiple terms), two Supreme Court Justices (one of which was a former governor), 5 elected Senators, including a Majority Whip and a Minority Whip, and dozens of congressmen with decades of seniority on some of the heavyweight committees. The notion that Dick Nixon, Pete Wilson, Arnold S, and Earl Warren, among others, get kicked to the curb is testament to both the strength of the overall field, and how powerful the eventual honoree is.
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With such a dramatic buildup (I know the suspense is killing all of you), the winner is...
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Ronald Reagan - Former Governor and 40th President of the United States
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Dubbed by his detractors and Washington insiders as just a novice, B-movie actor, Ronald Reagan's new career in politics took off after his "Time for Choosing" speech on behalf of 1964 GOP Presidential nominee Barry Goldwater. Reagan, himself a former Democrat who claimed that the party left him instead of vice versa, gave what might be the most famous broadcasted political speech by an unelected citizen on October 27, 1964. The speech laid out his ideological conservative vision for smaller government, and complemented the summer convention speech given by Goldwater in San Francisco. The rest, as they say, is history. .
Given almost no chance at the outset of his campaign to defeat the popular incumbent Edmund G "Pat" Brown in the 1966 California Governor's race, Reagan stunned the establishments of both parties will an incredible 16% victory, which amounted to almost a 1 million vote margin. After a rocky, but successful first term which included conflicts with the late-60s protest movement on university campuses, Reagan handily won reelection to a 2nd term in 1970, defeating Democrat sacrificial lamb Jesse M Unruh.
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After his next term completed in 1975, Reagan spent a period in the so-called political wilderness before mounting an underdog campaign to unseat incumbent president Gerald Ford in the 1976 GOP Primary. Although he won a number of primaries later in the race, Reagan lost the nomination by a razor-thin margin: Ford's 1,187 delegates to Reagan's 1,070. After Ford lost a close race in the fall to Jimmy Carter, Reagan was set up comfortably to be the GOP heir-apparent in 1980, much to the chagrin of the Republican Party establishment. The malaise of the late 70s under Jimmy Carter, topped off by the weakness shown to the world via the Iran hostage crisis, was all the country could stand though, as Reagan defeated another incumbent handily, - this time in a three-way race - 50% for The Gipper to 41% for Carter.
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Four years later it was "Morning in America," as Reagan continued his string of blowout victories, this time winning 49 of 50 states, 525 out of 538 electoral votes, and 59% national vote over Walter "Fritz" Mondale in 1984. No modern candidate of any party has seen such electoral success on a national scale over the last 50 years. His legacy includes a voting block that was termed "Reagan Democrats," named for the more blue-collar, culturally conservative, middle-class voters that crossed over in droves to vote for the "Great Communicator" instead of his more liberal opponents. He is also the first President since Andrew Jackson whose Vice President succeeded him by victory, not because of death. Many experts concede that George Bush Sr. won in large part as an extended 3rd term of his former running mate.
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Though Reagan was succeeded as California Governor by the Democrat son of the man he defeated just eight years earlier, he laid the groundwork for future GOP success in the governors office in then 80s and 90s, as the party held the seat for 16 consecutive years. Reagan's electoral success in the state and helping keep the office GOP hands for so long are impressive accomplishments in a state that had billed itself from the 60s - forward as a "progressive" one.
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For all his electoral accomplishments and his keeping the GOP brand in such good shape throughout the 80s and 90s both nationally and statewide, Ronald Wilson Reagan earns California's entry into the "50 Best" Electionology series.
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Honorable Mention: Former Governor and Senator Pete Wilson; 1960 GOP Prez nominee, former President and VP, Richard Nixon.
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Next Week: Colorado
Next Week: Colorado
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- 50 Best
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