Wednesday evening, April 14, John and Michelle Hundley hosted Republican Congressional candidate Denise Gitsham at their Coronado home. The intentionally small gathering was intended to allow residents a chance to get to know Ms. Gitsham personally and learn about her stance on the issues.
Ms. Gitsham will be vying for the Republican nomination to the 52nd Congressional District now held by Democratic Congressman Scott Peters.
Before Ms. Gitsham faces off against the incumbent Scott Peters, Ms. Gitsham will need to defeat other Republican contenders in the June. Her strongest contender is Jacquie Atkinson.
House Speaker Paul Ryan selected Ms. Gitsham to be part of the Republican Young Guns, a group that identifies up-and-coming leaders in the Republican Party who are vying for competitive seats in November.
The California primary vote will be held on June 7.
For all contests for office-holding seats other than the U.S. President (e.g. U.S. Congress, U.S. Senate, State Assembly, State State) California has a top-two-candidates open primary system. In a top-two-candidate open system all office-seekers are listed on the same ballot; any voter can vote for any candidate regardless of party affiliation. Voters who have declined to state a political party, may also vote for any candidate of their choosing.
Then, no matter the affiliation, the top two candidates from the June primary will be on the final ballot in November. It is conceivable that two Republican contenders will be on the ballot in June, but not likely.
Readers might be interested to note that for the Presidential Election, California has something different than this “top-two-candidates” system. For the Presidential Election, we have what is called a “modified closed” primary system. It is “closed” because, for the presidential primaries, voters must vote within their party affiliation. For example, in June, Republicans will choose between Trump, Cruz, or Kasich. The Democrats will choose between Clinton or Sanders.
It is “modified” to accommodate the “prefer not to provide a preference” voters. Each party may decide how they want to deal with “prefer not to provide a preference” voters.
Voters in a Presidential primary election who decline to provide a party preference (choosing neither to join the Democratic Party nor the Republican Party) may not vote in the Republican presidential election according to the rules of the Republican Party. This is also true for the Green Party and the Peace and Freedom Party.
Conversely, those voters who decline to provide a party preference will be able to vote for a Democrat, a Libertarian, or a member of the American Independent, because those party’s rules allow them to do so.
You can learn more about both the Top Two Candidates Open Primary Act and the Modified Closed Presidential Election from this April 1, 2016 Press Release from the office of the California Secretary of State, Alex Padilla.
Ms. Gitsham hoped that her clarity on Republican values and stances of issues that are important to Coronado conservatives would resonate with the guests.
Gathered around the fireplace in the Hundley’s beautiful home, Ms. Gitsham shared her narrative. Born at Travis Air Force Base, she is the only child of a Chinese mother, who came to the United States via Taiwan and a father who served in the US Air Force for twenty years.
After her undergraduate studies, Ms. Gitsham went on to work as a staffer in the George W. Bush administration and graduated from Georgetown Law School. After working for a prestigious law firm and a biotech company that was developing alternative fuels, Ms. Gitman formed a public relations company, 7 Second Strategies.
As a fellow small business owner, Ms. Gitsham’s thoughts on the minimum wage, the regulatory process and taxes, connected with the many small business owners in the room. The candidate emphasized that creating a pro-business government is one of the top components of her platform.
The other important component of her platform is foreign policy. Given that Coronado has such close ties to the military, Coronado Republican voters will no doubt be pleased to see that she elevated this issue. Ms. Gitsham noted that she was a Constitutionalist and that one of the main mandates of the Constitution is “defense of the nation.” When asked if troops will need to go into Iraq to defeat ISIS, Ms. Gitsham responded: “We don’t have a choice.”
Ms. Gitsham explained that her platforms reflect her rejection of the idea that “the government knows better than the people.” She disagrees with Congressman Peter’s vote to support the Iran Agreement and as well as his vote against congressional oversight over the spending for the Iran Agreement.
Ms. Gitsham also emphasized that the U.S. must reduce energy dependency as much as possible, and this includes fostering businesses who are developing alternative energies.
One of the final questions of the evening came from the host, John Hundley. Surrounded by his wife Michelle and two of his daughters, he asked Ms. Gitsham what advice he would offer girls, like his daughters, who want to be leaders in their communities one day. Ms. Gitsham responded sincerely: “Listed to your heart, what you were made to do, what God wants you to do. Outside people may tell you otherwise, but you know who you are in your heart. Don’t let people influence you away from what God has created in you.”
It was clear that Ms. Gitsham has a strong affection for Coronado. She laughed as she explained that she mastered her cycling skills, when training for a triathlon, on the Coronado Silver Strand: “I even fell down a couple of times.” But it’s clear that Ms. Gitsham got back up and continued her mission. She completed the triathlon and is excited about her current goal: Representing Republicans in the race for the 52nd Congressional District.
As the evening winded down, John Hundley spoke passionately about his full commitment for Ms. Gitsham: “Denise is a leader of great integrity with a compelling vision.”
You learn more about the candidate at DeniseforCongress.com and on facebook.
