Ralston defends party's lackluster performance in 2022 elections

MAVOCKE -- Following a disappointing election season in which the Conservative Party failed to gain a single seat in the Senate, Jon Ralston, the party's leader in the federal Senate, is facing calls to resign.

There are still two Senate seats that remain unresolved from the 2022 election. Special elections are scheduled for next week in those contests in Marchenay and Damoign, respectively.

But last week's special election in Veroche, which saw one-term Sen. John Bosworth (C) lose re-election in a close race, has brought renewed calls for Ralston to step down.

"The last two elections, with Jon Ralston in charge, we haven't won any seats. We've stayed stagnant. We've failed to increase our numbers at all in the Senate, and that is unacceptable," said Veroche Conservative Party Chairman Andrew Feld.

But Ralston, who has been leader since 2017, vigorously defended his leadership over the party's failed 2022 campaigns.

In a televised interview with The Chamberlain Network's Michael Cupp, the senior Ansleigha senator acknowledged the party fell far short of predictions in the 2022 elections.

"We had the momentum going in to December, at least that was the narrative that people in the media and politicians were giving," Ralston admitted.

But while the media portrayed a Conservative "wave" in the December 2022 elections, the reality was much different, Ralston argued.

"If you actually go back to late November and you look at the polls, they showed a much different story than a wave election. They actually showed a much closer, more evenly-split election. So the idea of a 'wave' was incorrect and not consistent with the polling," Ralston said.

Conservatives should have gained at least a few seats, Ralston conceded. "But this was a very close election, and neither party won a mandate," he said.

Ralston has faced criticism from his own party members for failing to defend five CNS incumbent senators. 

Shannon McCann (Kaln.), Cathy De Beers (Mon.), Dick Trau (POG), John Bosworth (Ver.), and Hank Hjenigen (Wel.) all lost their seats to insurgent Nationalists, albeit by close margins.

Their defeats were painful, Ralston said. "But they all lost by just a tiny bit. No one got blown out of the water."

"So this idea that the Conservative Party got its head handed to them on a platter is just wrong," he told Cupp.

And Ralston pointed out the Conservative Party, while it may have lost five of its members, gained in other states.

"Look at Harvannah, where George Garesby won and we successfully defended Bourret Magiscanti in an NAT-leaning state. Look at Lial, another NAT state, where we successfully defended Andrea Doorfield and we got John BiGadi elected too. Look at Onakiah, where Deacon Busby (N) was defeated by Andrew Stykes (C). When you look at the whole country overall, we had our failures and our successes. But when you look at the whole country, you see the totality of the election results."

"In some places, we struggled. And we lost. In other places, we won and we won big. So I'm proud of the race we ran, I'm proud of the campaign we ran, and I'm proud of the people who won and the people who lost," said Ralston.

Asked whether it's time for him to step down following the disappointing election results, he said he would resign as Senate Minority Leader if his colleagues voted him out.

"If my colleagues want to vote on my leadership, if they want someone else to lead our party, I am more than happy and willing to have a vote. If they vote me out and I lose their confidence, then I will step down," he said matter-of-factly.

"I'm not looking to cling to power," he added. "But so far, I haven't heard any grumblings from my colleagues. Everyone has been very supportive, to my face at least, and has said, 'Hey John, you've done as good as you could with what you had to work with.' And I think people mean that. They know this last election was a lot closer than it was predicted to be, we were up against some strong incumbents, we had incumbents in NAT states...there were a number of factors that led to the mixed bag result that we got. But we're looking forward, not backward."

The party is already seeking out and persuading top recruits to enter the 2024 race, he said. 

"What we're finding, as we travel across the country meeting potential candidates and feeling out who would be a good person to run in each state...what we're finding is that people are tired of the Jim McCaren, NAT-led economy. They're tired of inflation. They're tired of out-of-control spending. They're tired of lunatic social policies, like radical transgenderism and LGBTQ indoctrination of our kids. They're tired of government having too much power over our everyday lives, shutting down our economy, forcing us to wear masks and isolate and stay away from our loved ones for months on end. People are tired of the Nationalist Party domineering and dictating to them what they can and can't do."

"People want freedom. They want liberty. They want to live their lives as they see fit, without big nanny-state government coming in and deciding for them. So we are recruiting candidates who feel strongly about those things and who are articulate and intelligent enough to campaign successfully on those ideas."

It's unclear if any other Conservative senator will step forward to challenge Ralston for the party's leadership. So far, no Conservative senators have publicly said or hinted they will challenge the Ansleigha senator.

And sources within the party's Senate caucus, who all asked to remain anonymous because they don't want to damage work relationships, said Ralston enjoys a high degree of popularity within the party's ranks.

"Most senators like him on the CNS side. I'm sure a lot of NAT senators hate his guts. But on our side, he's actually quite popular, because he's Conservative and opinionated, which makes the right-wing people happy. But he's also smart enough to know that extreme candidates don't win, so the moderates appreciate that about him," said one Senate Conservative staff member.

Still, someone could challenge him for the party's top job. And a similar fate could befall the Nationalist Party's leader, Sen. Debbie Madronas of Damoign, who has held the Senate Majority position for over a decade.

At this point though, neither Ralston nor Madronas have any active challengers, and both are deeply entrenched in the Senate's power-center. Sources in both parties say it would be difficult to defeat either of them.

For now, Ralston plans on continuing on as leader of the Conservatives.

"But it's not forever," he told Cupp. "At some point, I plan on retiring and letting the next generation of strong, young, intelligent Conservatives take over and lead us into the future."

Junes Charmagne pledges 'good working-relationship' with new Lt. Gov. DeMerius Jenkins

CLOTHEN, Lial -- The loss of his former lieutenant governor Jim Fallberry (C) hurts, Lial Gov. Junes Charmagne told reporters Wednesday. But the governor pledged to build a "good working-relationship" with Fallberry's successor, DeMerius Jenkins (N).

Mr. Jenkins, a 39-year-old community activist from southeast Monvaille, defeated the incumbent Fallberry, 72, in the December 2022 election.

Though elected separately, Charmagne and Fallberry, both Conservatives, had a close relationship at the state capitol in Clothen.

Both are moderates, although Fallberry is more to the right of the governor.

But sources close to both men say the two worked very well together.

"Gov. Charmagne had frequent contact with Lt. Gov. Fallberry. They met multiple times a week, sometimes daily. And the governor confided in and turned to the lieutenant governor often for advice," said one aide who worked for both men and was familiar with their relationship.

Charmagne acknowledged that in his Wednesday press conference.

"Jim Fallberry is a tough act to follow," the governor said. "I relied on him quite a bit, and he served our state well. It would be an understatement to say that he will be missed by me and my staff. We are very much going to miss him," said Charmagne.

But the governor said he will work with anyone, even a lieutenant governor from the opposition party.

"The people of Lial didn't elect me governor so I would only work with my friends or with people from my own party. They elected me and expect me to work with everyone, and that includes new folks who are from a different political party than I am. That's my job as governor, to work for the people of Lial and to do all I can, and have good relationships with all my peers, from all parties," said Charmagne.

During the election campaign, Conservatives hammered Jenkins, who served as a state legislator and city councillor, for his lack of experience.

As a community activist and progressive politician, Jenkins took a strong stance against police brutality of young African-Grassadellian men. And he made fighting racism a central pillar of his campaign.

Fallberry, a longtime state senator from Lovelace County in the northwestern suburbs of Monvaille, made his campaign for re-election about building on Lial's strong economy and fighting crime.

"There is nothing more important than protecting our children and grandchildren, protecting Lialan's property, and protecting our communities from violence, drugs, and gangs," he said during a November 2022 debate. "If I'm re-elected, I will do everything in my power to work with state senators and representatives to pass legislation that is tough on crime."

Jenkins criticized Fallberry and his supporters for not sufficiently recognizing police brutality and racism.

"It's almost like my opponent will support the police no matter what, even if they're in the wrong, even if they beat some kid with a baton, even if they shoot another young Black kid," said Jenkins at a November 2022 campaign rally in his hometown of Spratley Hill.

Fallberry dismissed that characterization.

"It's fascinating that, if you say you support police and you're tough on crime, the Nationalist Party automatically says you're racist. This isn't about race, it's about crime and public safety. Any attempt to make it about more than that is manipulation by my opponent," said Fallberry.

Despite the ugly overtones on race and policing, the campaign between Fallberry and Jenkins was mostly friendly. Jenkins was known on the campaign trail for being upbeat and friendly, and when his supporters openly called Fallberry racist, Jenkins defended his old, white, Conservative opponent.

"I don't think Jim Fallberry is racist. I think he's a good person, I think he has a good heart. I think he's just not aware of and doesn't see the racism that's all around us. He's not participating in it, he's not condoning it. But he's not seeing it and experiencing it like people of color are. That's the difference. We're just trying to bring visibility to this issue because so many white folks...and Jim's not the only one, we all know there are a lot of white folks like Jim, millions, who just aren't aware of racism. They don't experience it and feel it and see it on a daily basis like we do. But we live it everyday. So we're trying to open people's eyes and let them know that we support law enforcement, but we also want Black people treated fairly and with respect. That's all we're saying," Jenkins told the crowd.

For his part, Fallberry congratulated his successor and wished him well.

"DeMerius and I had a close race, we had a toughly-fought race. We disagreed on a lot of issues, and at times it got a little dirty, mostly from other people on the sidelines. But I think he's a nice young man, he's passionate, he cares very much about his community and the welfare of African-Grassadellians, and I certainly hope he succeeds as our next lieutenant governor," Fallberry told the Monvaille Journal.

"I hope that he listens to everyone, I hope that he considers other positions and opinions, and I hope that he does not let partisan politics cloud his judgment, because most politicians do that. I always tried to be independent and to stand up on my ideas and my own beliefs and not let anyone in the other party or my own party tell me what to do. And I hope DeMerius does that also," said Fallberry.

Junes Charmagne's team said the Charmagne-Jenkins relationship will be "a different dynamic" than Charmagne's close relationship with Fallberry, but will remain positive.

"As Gov. Charmagne has said in the past, he will work with anyone from any party to get things done for the people of Lial. I fully expect him to follow through on his word and work closely and positively with Lt. Gov. Jenkins," said Abby Hunt, spokesperson for the governor.

In a tweet, Jenkins said he remains committed to working with his Conservative counterparts as well.

"We need to build bridges between different groups in our state, and that starts with me building bridges to colleagues from the other party," he wrote.

POG Conservatives 'had nothing compelling to offer voters,' Mendajara says

LANSDALE, POG -- Despite incumbent Nationalist politicians having low approval ratings and presiding over a difficult economy, Conservative candidates in POG did not fare well in the 2022 elections.

There's a reason for that, says POG's Attorney General Austin Mendajara, the only Conservative statewide candidate to win in 2022.

"We had nothing compelling to offer voters," Mendajara told the Lansdale Focus newspaper in an interview.

Mendajara, first elected in 2018, pulled out a 51%-48% win in a close race against Nationalist political newcomer Devon Hunter.

But the attorney general performed better than Mike Indano, the Conservatives' candidate for governor.

Indano fell short of the state's top job to Gov. Ramon Ramos (N) by just 53,000 votes out of more than 9.5 million cast.

Sen. Dick Trau (C), the state's only Conservative senator and heir to a political dynasty, did even worse, losing to Nationalist Assemblyman Jim Mahenas. Trau took 48 percent to Mahenas' 50 percent.

Secretary of State Benny Ortiz (C), a fellow Hispanic who was elected in 2018 alongside Mendajara, lost his bid for re-election too, edged out slightly by little-known Nationalist Jane Grey.

Ms. Grey took almost 50% compared to nearly 49% for Ortiz.

So why did Conservative candidates falter, when economic and political conditions were ripe for solid Conservative gains? 

After all, Ramos, POG's governor, is a hero for progressive, but deeply divisive and polarizing, and loathed by Conservatives.

"We should have beat him easily," Mendajara told the Focus. "With the economy the way it is, and Ramon being so polarizing and confrontational, the voters were really hungry for a good alternative. But Mike Indano is also polarizing and controversial. You put two controversial and polarizing people in the same room, and people tend to stick with the one they already have and know," said Mendajara.

The Indano-Ramos race was exceedingly close. In the initial vote tally, Indano had a small lead. But two subsequent recounts found Ramos to be the winner.

Indano has since accused Ramos and Nationalists of cheating.

"It was rigged," he told a Lansdale conservative radio host last week. "The Nationalists had this thing rigged from the beginning. They didn't want me and they'd do anything to protect Ramon Ramos, so they rigged the counting. We have proof of that, we have evidence to back that up," said Indano, although he declined to give any specifics when pressed to present evidence.

Nationalists and many Conservatives stress the gubernatorial election was not fraudulent.

"Ramon won and I think he did so fairly and squarely," Mendajara said. "It just was a very close race. But it shouldn't have been. With a stronger Conservative candidate, Ramon would have lost with no question."

As for Dick Trau, the incumbent Conservative senator who is the son-in-law of former federal Secretary of State Dick Lanman, Mendajara says Lanman tried to walk the middle in a polarized election.

"Dick tried to stay in the middle. He wanted to appeal to, and he did appeal to, the middle-of-the-road, moderate voters. But he also needed the support of the really conservative voters. Unfortunately, his moderate stances really irked a lot of the hardliners. And Jim Mahenas, his opponent, was also a moderate, middle-of-the-road Nationalist, so they had to compete for those independent and swing voters, and it was just a tough race for Dick," Mendajara said.

And Benny Ortiz, another young Hispanic Conservative who was often profiled and closely aligned with Mendajara, he lacked confidence, his attorney general friend says.

"Benny is a friend of mine, he's a nice guy. He has a good heart and wants to serve his community and our state. But I think he came across as a bit timid, a bit insecure. And he was running against a very confident, assured candidate on the other side who projected confidence. And voters want confidence in their secretaries of state," said Mendajara.

But after election losses, "everyone looks for someone to blame," Mendajara added.

And part of the blame lies with POG's Conservative Party itself.

"The party leadership, here in POG and also nationally in some ways too, is stuck in the 1990s and 1980s," he said. "We need to realize that POG's demographics are changing, POG is becoming a younger, more diverse state. And yet, we as a party, we are stuck in the old-fashioned mindset. We aren't appealing to minorities as much as we should. We're not appealing to women as much as we should. We're not appealing to working class people as much as we should. We need to re-frame our perspective, I think. And offer voters more than just a return to the past."

POG State Conservative Party Chairwoman Charla Huggerin disputed Mendajara's characterization of the state party.

"While I respect Attorney General Mendajara, I don't feel the POG Conservative party is stuck in the past. We are very much future-minded and looking forward to new possibilities and new growth policies for POGeans. And the data backs that up. All of our Conservative candidates did very well among minority voters in places like Bassutton County, Van Hassett County, Clemson County, Bardwell County, and to some degree in Caspella and Harpinscott Counties as well," said Huggerin.

Indeed, Conservative candidates did run up the score in heavily Conservative, upper-middle class Bassutton County, which includes many northwestern suburbs of Lansdale.

The party also did well in Van Hassett County, which is home to the University of POG and several military bases. Conservatives also dominated in Clemson County in the state's southeast, another highly-educated county that includes the southwestern suburbs of Kingham and has a large minority population.

Bardwell, Caspella and Harpinscott Counties were more evenly split. However, the NAT performed well with the majority of minority voters, particularly in the Kingham, Lansdale and Knoxbury metro areas.

While Conservatives had some localized successes among minority voters in certain areas, Huggerin agreed with Mendajara that the party could do more to reach out to non-white voters.

"We have a lot more to do, a lot more room for growth, and we are always looking to expand the big tent of our party to appeal to POGeans of all backgrounds," she said.

Looking to the next governor's election in 2026, Mendajara has not said whether he intends to run. As POG's only statewide Conservative elected official, he is the most logical choice for Conservatives to run.

But there is no shortage of ambitious CNS candidates in POG, and its likely Mendajara, who is moderate, would have an open path to the party's nomination.

Indano, who has ran unsuccessfully for governor once and federal Senate twice, has not ruled out running again in 2026.

"It's something we're thinking about," he said in his radio interview last week. "We still will need a pro-growth, pro-business, anti-tax governor in 2026, so I think the need will still be there. And do we have any other strong conservative candidates who can stand on their own feet and not be controlled like a puppet by the state party and the establishment? Those are questions we'll have to ask ourselves in the future," said Indano.

Mendajara hopes Indano will soften his image a bit before running again for the governorship in 2026.

"I don't care who runs for governor in '26, but whoever it is, I hope we have learned as a party that blowhards do not win. Buffoons do not win. People who cry 'cheating' every time they lose do not win. People who sow doubt about elections and who rile up their base voters with outlandish stories and conspiracies will not win in POG. So our next nominee for governor needs to be someone who's smart, who appeals to a broad swath of voters, and who is above all the fray and noise of the political discourse," said Mendajara.

Will that candidate be him?

"It's way too early to tell. I'll let you know in three years," he laughed.