With the images of families being tear-gassed at the San Diego-Tijuana border being shown on television every day, it’s important that we emphasize the resistance that is growing in California.
Orange County has been a Republican stronghold in California for over 70 years. It’s the birthplace of Richard Nixon and the influential right-wing John Birch Society. It’s where President Ronald Reagan had a margin of victory that he credited not only for his success but also the overall success of the Republican party. Now, with a complete blue sweep of its formerly red Congressional seats, Orange County is no longer GOP territory, but instead it’s an example for how Democrats can engage a new, diverse, and energized electorate in 2020 for victory nationwide.
For over 70 years, politics in this region was rooted in mobilizing the white suburban majority and powerful elites — which required repeatedly campaigning on tax breaks for the rich instead of affordable healthcare or protections for working-class families. Demographics and money were on their side.
Change has been on the horizon since Republican-governor Pete Wilson waged a war on immigrants with Prop 187 in 1994, a move that energized a generation of young Latino voters and began GOP’s long slide toward irrelevance in California. The seeds Wilson planted ripened to full fruition this year when new and infrequent voters, especially Latinos and Asian American-Pacific Islander, powered the blue wave that swept Orange County.
Voters were infuriated by Trump’s policies of family separation and cruelty to immigrant children, with polls showing Latino and Asian American-Pacific Islander (AAPI) voters reacting strongly and negatively to candidates who failed to stop the cruel policy of ripping children away from their parents.
None of this happened by chance or by accident. And it won’t necessarily happen again if we don’t keep up the momentum.
This year, grassroots activists, union members, and working-class families partnered with immigrant-centered organizations, youth-led organizations, and women-focused organizations to ensure the new voice of Orange County voters would no longer be neglected by those who represent us in Washington, D.C. They were mobilized by the on-the-ground organizing of workers and organizations, like SEIU United Service Workers West, committed to protecting our health care and our immigrant brothers and sisters. And they found candidates like Gil Cisneros, Katie Porter and Harley Rouda who share California values of inclusion and equity.
We were a powerful force on the airwaves with compelling ads tying Republicans to Trump’s policy of family separation — ensuring the GOP congressional members couldn’t hide from the cries of children who Republicans abandoned in Trump’s detention centers, left screaming for their mothers.
Over the course of two years, we engaged the people of Fullerton, Irvine, Anaheim, La Brea, and countless other cities in Orange County by knocking on doors and phone banking to have the deep conversations on the issues. We also spoke with voters like USWW member Elida Carrillo, who became a U.S. citizen last year and cast a vote for the first time this year, moved to ensure that individuals who get elected into office respect the hard-working immigrant families who are a part of our communities.
Reagan once called Orange County the land “where good Republicans go to die.” Ironically, it may also be the place where California’s values — of respect, dignity, and inclusion — find a new life for the next generation of voters.
David Huerta is president of SEIU United Service Workers West. María Colin is a USWW member.
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