Losing its grip

The Republican Party's political hold on Orange County, CA, has declined due to the changing nature of politics, changing demographics and several embarrassing controversies. The single most important cause of this decline was the voter passage of term limits in 1992 which limited the term of congressmen to six-years and that of senators to eight years. Other causes include the passage of a campaign finance law that put a cap on campaign financing and the passage of an open primary system that lessens the chance of ideological domination by a portion of the voter population.