Zócalo Public Square

The Republican Party should be the dominant force in American politics. GOP politicians now control the White House, 33 governorships, and hold majorities in the U.S. House, Senate and 32 state legislatures. But in spite of the party’s electoral success, the rise of Donald Trump has raised difficult questions about the party’s long-term future. Does Trump’s flirtation with white nationalism threaten to taint the party of Lincoln and permanently alienate younger and more diverse generations of Americans? Can the GOP survive the rise of anti-establishment forces on the right that reject old-guard conservatives who remain its financial base? Moderator Christina Bellantoni, Assistant Managing Editor, Politics, for the Los Angeles Times, was joined by Mike Madrid, a Sacramento GOP political consultant and partner at GrassrootsLab, Cassandra Pye, a public affairs strategist and founder of 3.14 Communications, and Leslie Graves, publisher of Ballotpedia, to consider whether the Republican Party is stronger or weaker