BIEBER, Calif. — With no water to irrigate his crops, Brian Dahle's success as a farmer depends heavily on the whims of rain clouds drifting over the grassy valleys and frostbitten mountains of California's northeastern frontier.
But it's been a long dry spell for Republicans hoping to become governor of California. And the conservative legislator from Lasse County's fate in this year's election depends on a break in an unfriendly political climate in a state where the GOP spent years slowly withering into irrelevance.
"This is a tough race," Dahle said about his decision to challenge Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom. "There's no denying it, but I believe that things are lining up. People are not happy. There's more money in Sacramento than I've ever seen in my entire life. They're throwing it around — and people are still mad."
