In a state like Washington where Democrats have long held power, Republicans already have a structural disadvantage, said Ben Gaskins, a political science professor at Lewis and Clark College.
That’s only part of the story. Over the past half-century, American political parties have become far more nationalized, Gaskins said, making it harder for Republicans to separate themselves from the national party, and by extension, from Trump.
Trump “sucks the oxygen out of all the other Republican institutions,” Gaskins said. Trump’s strong media presence coupled with his demand for unrelenting loyalty in the party make it hard for even sitting Republicans to win back power, he said.
While Republicans need to focus on November’s general election, they shouldn’t lose sight of the long term, said Mark Stephan, an associate professor of political science at Washington State University Vancouver.
“Is their party willing to be the permanent minority party in the state of Washington?” Stephan said. “If you actually want to win elections and you actually want to maybe even have some power in the state overall, then you have to change. You have to moderate.”
The party should lean into independent voters and away from Trump, and accept candidates that do so, he said.
“Be principled, but be willing to compromise and be willing to have a bigger tent,” Stephan said.