No more red and blue states, says RNC chair

The chairman of the Republican National Committee said today that a red state/blue state analysis of national politics is a “road to nowhere” for the party’s future.

Reince Priebus, in Seattle to listen to party activists and spread his message of growth and renewal, said that no state is permanently blue and the Republicans should not cede any to the Democrats, as they did in the 2012 election by concentrating just on eight swing states.

Had GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney not written off Washington state, Priebus said, Rob McKenna would be governor today.

“Local candidates suffer when the national camp doesn’t come into a state to compete,” Priebus said. “Rob was rowing alone.” McKenna, a moderate, lost to Jay Inslee by about three percentage points in November.

McKenna stood with Priebus for a brief news conference following what the chairman described as a spirited conversation with state GOP leaders about how the party could improve. Priebus, 40, has been touring the country over the past few weeks, including meetings with black leaders in Atlanta and Hispanic and Asian-American leaders in Los Angeles.

President Obama beat Romney in just about every demographic except white males. Priebus said the GOP has to become more open and inclusive of new members. It also has to build permanent outreach and get-out-the-vote operations and not just mount campaigns in the six months before an election.

“We are in a world of permanent politics,” Priebus said.

Latest news:

Comments | More in General Election, Governor, Politics Northwest, Statewide | Topics: GOP, Reince Priebus, Republican National Committee

Connect with us

Subscribe |

Email a news tip

About this blog

Politics Northwest is the go-to blog for politics in our region. The blog explores national, state and local political news and issues. Reporters from Washington, D.C., to Seattle City Hall to the state capital in Olympia contribute. Editors are Richard Wagoner and Beth Kaiman.

How would you balance the state budget and fund education?

Cut spending? Increase taxes? Some of each? Here’s your chance to take a swing at balancing the state budget. We’ve created an interactive budget game that lets you pick from dozens of potential budget cuts and tax increases to balance the budget and find more money for education. Try it now.