Longtime Republican Randy Berholtz has been named Secretary of the California Republican Party, signaling a change in party leadership following a disappointing midterm election. The 2018 midterm led to increased Democratic dominance in the state, with Republicans now holding a mere seven of 53 congressional seats. Democrats also have three-quarters of the seats in the State Assembly, with the governor, lieutenant governor, both U.S. Senators, the secretary of state, and attorney general all being Democrats.
With the GOP struggling mightily in California, changes must be made to reinvigorate the Party with principled leadership. Enter Randy Berholtz.
Berholtz has a wealth of experience as an academic, attorney, small business owner, and executive. He received his B.A. from Cornell University, his M.B.A.from the University of San Diego, was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University where he received his M.Litt, and has a J.D. from Yale Law School. He has taught business law, licensing, biotech law and patent litigation at the Rady School of Business at UCSD, the Thomas Jefferson School of Law, and at the USD School of Law. Berholtz practiced law with firms in New York and San Diego from 1992 to 2000, and prior to that was a law clerk to Judge Jerry E. Smith on the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. He also has extensive experience with life science and clean technology companies, including over 24 years with venture capital, security, finance, intellectual property, mergers and acquisitions. Lastly, he has worked alongside the Election Integrity Project California to combat rampant voter fraud.
While Berholtz’s clearly has excellent academic and career experience, his vision and commitment to revitalizing the California GOP may be even more impressive. He acknowledges the severe blow dealt to the Party in the last election, as well as the uphill battle moving forward. Berholtz has emphasized the need to utilize technology and mobilization of key demographics and organizations. While it is vital to find ways to reach out to various groups, he recognizes the importance of maintaining core conservative principles such as limited government, fiscal responsibility, family values, and individual liberty.
He has developed a comprehensive plan to accomplish the immediate goal of Republican electoral success, and the longer term goal of advancing conservative ideas and policies throughout California. His plan includes supporting and mobilizing grassroots organizations like the California Federation of Republican Women and Young Republicans, developing statewide ballot harvesting and brand messaging, increasing outreach efforts to traditionally non-Republican demographics, and utilizing legal resources to challenge Democratic attempts to undermine election integrity and impose restraints on California gun owners and taxpayers. Berholtz’s plan is certainly ambitious, but his dedication to improving the state of California through the success of the Republican Party offers a refreshing and innovative strategy.
In the past, Berholtz has unsuccessfully run for the Republican Central Committee and the San Dieguito Union High School District Board, but has not allowed these setbacks to deter his efforts in public service. Berholtz has certainly never been one to give up, considering that he is also a two-time cancer survivor. He finally has an opportunity as Secretary, where he is sure to advance the ambitions of the Republican Party while fighting for the freedom and prosperity of all Californians—and all Americans.
Photo by AJ Robbie
