LAS VEGAS (KSNV MyNews3) -- They weren't happy with the results of the last election and they're already planning for the next one.
Republican governors from across the nation are in Las Vegas for their annual conference. This year's focus: learning from the GOP's presidential defeat and moving forward.
The association reminds the public that 60 percent of states have Republican leaders.
They say instead of looking back, they need to look forward to 2016, sharing the lessons learned from this past presidential election.
For one, the party says it needs to set the tone fast. Mitt Romney was portrayed as someone who didn't care about the people.
At a press briefing, RGA Chairman Bob McDonnell says it's not about what you say, but about what people hear.
“What they heard is we are a party that cares more about people who already lived the American dream and made it as opposed to the rest of the country that's still trying to climb that ladder and reach the American dream,” he said. “That's not our position.”
The RGA expects Nevada to remain a swing state in future elections. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal says to be successful in contested states, they'll have to offer specifics on economic and fiscal issues.
“Going forward in this campaign, Governor Romney did not particulate a vision on how he's going to improve the quality of life for American people clearly enough,” he said, “so instead this became a competition of biographies and resumes.”
The group says they'll need to make changes but not to their principles. On the national level, they’ll need to replicate what's become the bright spot in the GOP: what's being done at the gubernatorial level.
Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval was in Washington to receive an award and did not attend the conference.
