Van Tran for Congress

House Republican Recruitment Shines

By Chris Cillizza | July 8, 2009
The Washington Post

Six months into a world where political Washington is totally controlled by Democrats, recruitment efforts for House Republicans are showing promise — the first evidence, party strategists argue, that the hostile environment toward the GOP over the last few years is turning around.

In the last few days, former Rep. Steve Pearce (R) announced he would seek to regain his New Mexico seat in 2010, while state Sen. Steve Stivers (R), who lost in 2008 by just 2,312 votes to Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (D), said he would make a rematch next fall.
Pearce and Stivers join a handful of other quality GOP House candidates including Montgomery City Councilwoman Martha Roby in Alabama’s 2nd district, state Rep. Cory Gardner in Colorado’s 4th, Assemblyman Van Tran in California’s 47th and former Rep. Steve Chabot in Ohio’s 1st.

“Candidate recruitment is often a leading political indicator,” said Ed Brookover, a longtime operative at the National Republican Congressional Committee and now a GOP media consultant. “Challenger candidates are often the first to feel a change in the political winds.”

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