It's going to take a lot more than one California state Senate seat chaging hands to alter the political fortunes of Republicans in California,, but hope is a precious thing, and the surprise - even shocking - victory last week of a white, conservative rancher in a 60% Hispanic district might be a turning point for a party that has been virtually shut out in state politics for more than 15 years. Washington Times: According to the logic of politics, Leticia Perez should have handily won the heavily Democratic and Hispanic district in California's central valley, and her failure to do so has Republicans eager to develop a victory template for struggling GOP candidates elsewhere in the deep-blue state and across the country. Fresno cherry farmer and cattle rancher Andy Vidak, who is fluent in Spanish, said he captured the state Senate seat in last week's closely watched runoff vote by connecting with Hispanic voters with a "common-sense" approach that focused on job creation,...(Read Full Post)