Often in recent history times of turmoil have been preceded by times of great jubilation and success.  The great depression for instance of this century was preceded by the roaring 20’s.  Such is the current state of the Republican Party in California.  Great joy and a sense of eager excitement have gripped Republicans everywhere in anticipation of great gains in this year’s midterm election.  While pollsters and pundits across the state and nation have predicted massive Republican gains this year, the real story of the Republican Party in California is being written in a little watched race in a place where the economic hammer has fallen the hardest.  In Imperial County, CA, where unemployment is the highest in the State, the Republicans are facing what amounts to Custard’s last stand.

The Republican nominee for the 80th District is a young up-and-coming politician by the name of Steve Sanchez.  Sanchez is a Conservative stalwart, well liked by his party base.  He served for several years under a previous Republican Assemblywoman, who termed out, as her District Director.  Sanchez is a Marine Corps Combat Veteran, active in many non-profit organizations and on the Board of Directors for two local Chambers.  In other words, the perfect pedigree for his race.  By all accounts he has run a solid campaign, the best his opponent has been able to come up with against him is some missing paperwork on a business he owns, hardly a scandal.  Steve Sanchez, a Latino candidate in a District that has been represented by a Republican for 8 of the last 10 years, in a year that is going the Republican’s way, has everything he needs to win.

Steve Sanchez will lose November 2nd.  Surprised?  Don’t be.  Here is the rest of the story.  His opponent, like Sanchez, is Latino.  But his Democratic opponent, Manuel Perez, has received nearly $500,000 in direct support from his party to try and hold this seat.  Steve Sanchez, the only Latino candidate running for State legislature in California, has received less than $50,000 according to the local paper.  That’s right, 10% of his opponents sum.  In many ways this is the story of the Republican Party in California.  In a State with a population that is increasingly Latino, the Republican Party has been completely inept when it comes to giving this important voting block positions of power.  While the complexion of the state has changed, the complexion of the party has stood stuck in suspended growth.  Perhaps the saddest part of the whole story is, they don’t seem to mind.  Even when a candidate falls in their laps, a candidate they probably could not dream up, they turn their nose.

So while the Republican Party may celebrate in great glee on November 3rd, the true story of this election and future elections to come lay in a sad story of abandonment in a County that knows what it is like to be forgotten.  And one day soon the Republican Party will look back and wonder why they ignored Latino’s and their candidates.  Standing in their own unemployment line, they will have time to ponder.