Conn. Republican Party should secede
Like all state parties, the CT-GOP is linked to the broader national party. It supports its presidential candidate, it works to implement traditional Republican ideals, and to aid the national party. It is, by definition, a branch on the Republican oak.
Has being a part of this national party helped? The national affiliations of the party do nothing but hurt the party in Connecticut. Connecticut voters, by and far, despise the current national Republican Party. Trump lost by 13% in Connecticut in 2016. This margin may seem close. But in reality, it was because of Hillary Clinton’s unpopularity, not because voters liked Trump. In 2020, when the Democrats fielded anyone besides her, Trump lost by 20%. Twenty percent! He was so hated in Connecticut that the state voted 16% more Democratic than the national average.
The Republican Party also flops in Congressional Races. In four out of five of the House districts, Democrats won by around 20% in 2022. That same year saw U.S. Sen Richard Blumenthal re-elected, beating his Republican competitor by 15%. It has been a Democratic stronghold since 2008.
On the state level, the Republicans do little better. It barely rules a third of the Senate, and four of those seats were won by less than 1.5%. In the House, they are barely treading water, having about 35% of the seats. Five of their 53 seats were won by 2% or less. Ned Lamont won reelection by about 13%.
Connecticut despises the Republican Party. It is facing the very-real threat of having less than onethird in both houses, and losing the governor’s office. In practice, this is an extinction to the party. They would lose any-and-all governing power in the state.
Connecticut hating Republicans doesn’t mean it shouldn’t have an opposition. Every successful democracy needs to have an opposition. Political parties need to face a possibility of losing. That keeps them accountable to the voters. If a party knows that it will win every time, they have a dangerous amount of freedom in either enacting very unpopular legislation, or in enacting no legislation.
Not everything is sunshine and roses in Connecticut. Energy-and-gas prices are still through the roof; roofs that most can’t afford, as housing prices have also skyrocketed. People are leaving the state in droves, and its economy has stagnated for years. Clearly the Democrats are not perfect. They need an opposition to either force them to compete and fix things, or they will lose an election, and an opposition can have a shot at governance. That’s how democracy should work.
What benefits does the CT GOP get from remaining part of the GOP? Perhaps some state funding, but let’s be honest, it can’t be that much. The national organization cannot be giving that much to this failing, unpopular state-party. Perhaps there’s some other support, like receiving training, or positive news coverage from Republican sources. Clearly, however, this is not helping that much if the party is doing this badly.
It’s not like national Republican politics are popular here, either. Connecticut residents overwhelmingly favor of abortion, gay rights, and fighting climate change. National Republican policy is unattractive in Connecticut.
Who votes for the Republicans here? It is overwhelmingly either rural areas or the elderly. So, on one hand of their base, they are elderly who are dying out or leaving the state. On the other hand, there are rural areas which are shrinking. Associating with the unpopular national party and its unpopular policies will lead to the Republicans becoming an irrelevant party in Connecticut.
If Republicans really want to steadfastly support those policies, they can. But they will be relegated to such a small influence in the state that they won’t even be able to fight for these policies. A permanent trifecta in the state, with two-thirds majorities in both houses, will allow the Democrats to uncompetitively do whatever they want.
How do you become competitive? Well, make yourself appealing to voters; and that means not being “Republican.” Connecticut’s Republican Party should just secede from the national party. It can have the same members. But they should simply found a new, independent party, specifically just for Connecticut. One focused on policies that can actually win elections. Aggressively fighting for cost-of-living reforms and policies that are actually popular. Then, and only then, will the Democrats have competition, and Connecticut can be a competitive (and therefore functional) democracy.