THE TRIP TO THE COAST. It’s been several days since Gov. Chris Sununu returned home from California, where he keynoted a major Republican event that just fueled speculation that he’s on his way toward becoming a U.S. Senate candidate. Sununu said prior to his departure a week ago that, other than the address to the California Republican Party, he had no other political events or meetings scheduled. He hasn’t spoken about it since he’s been back home. GOP strategists take Sununu at his word that he had no political meeting other than the California GOP Fall Convention, but they also say that it’s unlikely there was absolutely no other political component to the visit. “A governor of New Hampshire does not get on a plane and go to California for no reason at all,” one strategist said. “There was a reason and the only reason that makes sense is that he was making important connections for a U.S. Senate run. “California has one of the most conservative Republican parties in the country, which is what makes this more interesting. Chris Sununu is not their type of Republican. The strategist said that although the governor and his spokesperson said Sununu had no other “political meetings” on his schedule, he could have had informal one-on-one discussions with potential big-money donors. “The U.S. Senate campaign is being handed to him on a silver platter,” the strategist said. “All he has to do is collect the money. A Chris Sununu versus (Sen.) Maggie Hassan race would be the top Senate race in the country.” Will he run for the Senate? “There's always a little doubt,” the strategist said, “but there is much less doubt today because of his trip to California.” Another GOP strategist who is a Sununu supporter said it was not surprising that California Republicans, who are very much in the political minority in their home state, wanted to hear from Sununu. “He’s proven how to govern as a conservative and how to win elections as a conservative in a purple state,” this strategist said. If Sununu is planning to run for the U.S. Senate, California is fertile ground for fundraising, the strategist said. “They are not able to elect their own candidates but they certainly can fundraise for candidates. The visit there was a possible way for the governor to expand that national donor network. “Although California is heavily Democrat, it doesn’t mean there aren’t a lot of Republican business owners and influencers who care about the future of the country.” “If he announces for the Senate, 10 minutes after he does, they’ll crash the server donating to his campaign from around the country. There’s going to be a natural excitement over the question of whether he can do in Washington what he has done in New Hampshire.” Longtime national Republican strategist Michael Murphy, who is based in California, told New Hampshire Primary Source that Sununu may have been underwhelmed. He said he wouldn’t be surprised if the California Republican Party reminded him of the Alabama GOP. “It used to be more of the old moderates, but like many activists groups, it’s hardened a lot,” Murphy said. “There are still some classic conservatives, but there are a lot of movement conservatives, a lot of ‘MAGA’ folks.” “If he thought that he’d tap into a lot of money, the problem is that the party has become such a husk of what it used to be – and the least likely place to find donors is the state party convention.” “The days of the big California bundlers are gone but there is some libertarian wealth in the tech industry.” But overall, said Murphy, California “is not the player in Republican politics that it used to be.”