• Al Ramirez,  CA-Sen,  California Republican Assembly,  California Republican Party,  Dan Hughes,  Dianne Feinstein,  Elizabeth Emken

    CA-Sen: Conservative California Republican Assembly Endorses Al Ramirez for U.S. Senate

    While the California Republican Party has endorsed Elizabeth Emken for California United State Senate, the more conservative California Republican Assembly has just announced their endorsement for businessman, Al Ramirez.

    Republican U.S. Senate candidate Al Ramirez, an accomplished businessman, received the endorsement of the California Republican Assembly (CRA) at the group’s endorsing convention on Sunday.

    “I’m incredibly pleased and honored to have the support of the State’s oldest and largest Republican volunteer organization,” said Ramirez.  “The endorsement of the CRA demonstrates that our message is resonating with Republicans across the State.  We simply cannot afford more of the same socialistic policies of Feinstein and Obama.  It’s time to restore the American Dream in California.”

    The CRA endorsement is one of the most coveted in all of Republican politics.  Ronald Reagan even referred to the CRA as “The conscience of the Republican Party.”

    Candidates seeking the CRA endorsement went through a rigorous vetting process which included giving speeches to the entire delegation and facing a session of tough questioning in front of a “Fact Finding Committee.”  In order to receive an endorsement, a candidate must be supported by two-thirds of the voting delegates.

    Ramirez was endorsed overwhelmingly by a vote of the entire CRA delegation late Sunday morning.

    This endorsement has to deliver a decided edge to Ramirez, especially with so many candidates in the race vying to run against the front-runner and incumbent Senator Dianne Feinstein.

    Millions of dollars were embezzled from her campaign. Twenty-two challengers are trying to knock her off in the June primary. And the stakes in the November election are nothing less than control of Capitol Hill.

    But U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein isn’t a bit worried. Her campaign is on cruise control, her re-election all but certain — yet again.

    After holding elected office for all but five of the last 42 years, Feinstein is the doyenne of California Democrats. She’s so politically bulletproof that no A-list candidates are wasting their time and money trying to dethrone her.

    At 78, Feinstein has become the rare lawmaker who plays to her own political base while not overly riling her opponents. “She should have her easiest re-election ever,” said Gary Jacobson, a UC San Diego political science professor.

    Feinstein, who won her last two elections in landslides, attributes her success to her work ethic and her ability to get along with fellow Washington politicians during venomous times. “I am known for working hard, and I can tell you if I wasn’t, I would have some major opposition,” Feinstein said in an interview last week.

    Just how little she has to worry about was shown in a recent Survey USA poll. It found 51 percent of California’s likely voters intend to vote for Feinstein, while Republicans Elizabeth Emken of Danville and Dan Hughes of Oceanside were backed by 2 percent each. All other candidates clocked in at either 1 percent or zero.

    But, will this endorsement be enough for Ramirez to come in second place above Elizbeth Emken and Dan Hughes?

  • Al Ramirez,  Dan Hughes,  Elizabeth Emken

    CA-Sen: California Republican Party Endorses Elizabeth Emken for U.S. Senate Race

    The endorsement hit the internets yesterday after the California GOP Board of Directors made their decision.

    From the press release:

    Republican U.S. Senate candidate Elizabeth Emken, an accomplished businesswoman specializing in efficiency and cost-cutting, and nationally recognized advocate for autism research and treatment, has received the unanimous endorsement of the California Republican Party in her bid to unseat Dianne Feinstein from the U.S. Senate.

    “This is the equivalent of winning the primary under the old system,” said California Republican Party Executive Director Brent Lowder.

    Under the new open primary system, Emken’s endorsement gains the full support and backing of the California Republican Party’s statewide operations. Elected state party leaders met yesterday in Burbank as dozens of candidates from Assembly, State Senate, and Congressional races, as well as the U.S. Senate contest, made their bids for the party’s endorsement.

    “This was a humbling experience and a tremendous honor to receive the Party’s endorsement,” said Emken. “I look forward to the challenge ahead and will start right away building a strong partnership with Chairman Del Beccaro and Republican leaders as we work toward victory together.”

    Emken becomes the first Republican candidate to earn the Party’s statewide endorsement under a format established as a result of Proposition 14, California’s new open primary that eliminated the traditional ballot process to determine Republican nominees.

    I would have preferred the state Republican Party NOT to endorse in this race.

    Why?

    There is nothing wrong with Elizabeth Emken and I WILL vote for her, if she receives the Republican nomination. But, there are some other Republicans running in this race and they deserve state party support too – most notably, Al Ramirez and Dan Hughes.

    I say with multiple GOP candidates in the top-two field, the state party should stay the hell out of the way and not show offical party favoritism. California no longer has contested primary elections and a state party miscue could doom the party from placing a candidate in the general election.

    The California GOP will be mightily embarrassed should Ramirez or Hughes beat Emken in the June Primary and win the likely right to face off against long-time incumbent Democrat U.S. senator Dianne Feinstein.

    Then, the party leaders will do what, with a pissed off Republican registered candidate against Senator Dianne Feinstein?