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Republican governors had arguably the best showing of anyone on Election Day last month, and a key mastermind behind their efforts is Phil Cox, who cut his teeth in Virginia politics and has now become one of the most sought-after campaign staffers of the 2016 presidential cycle.

The 40-year-old, who stepped down after nearly four years as executive director of the Republican Governors Association, is credited with playing an instrumental role in expanding the number of GOP governors in a year when they were just supposed to be trying to limit losses. He added to a resume that already included local and statewide victories in Virginia, a key swing state.

Still, Mr. Cox has largely floated under the radar, leaving the political limelight to his boss, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

The fact that nobody outside of Washington knows his name, other than governors and their staffs, tells you everything about how he approaches his job, said Mike McKenna, a GOP strategist who has worked with Mr. Cox. He is not the star; he is the guy behind the scenes doing the work day in and day out. He is very much what he is. He is a blue-collar guy from Massachusetts, and he does the blue-collar work.

Massachusetts was also the scene of one of his big triumphs last month, when Republicans captured the governorship of the deep-blue state, along with those of Maryland, Illinois and Arkansas, and held onto governorships in 20 of the 22 states they were defending, including surviving tough challenges in Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan, Kansas and Maine.

Phil Cox kept the RGA focused on good policy and good politics, said Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who was re-elected and could be eying a presidential run. His leadership was key to our recall win in 2012 and helping a wave of us get elected in 2014. Plus, Phil is just a quality guy.

Maryland Gov.-elect Larry Hogan, who pulled off perhaps the biggest upset of the campaign season, said that the Cox-Christie duo was instrumental in helping me achieve victory in a deep-blue state.

The fact that we now have 31 Republican governors is a testament to the outstanding job of Phil Cox and his team, Mr. Hogan said.

Democrats also took note.

Over the last four years, weve gone head-to-head in a number of races, said Colm OComartun, executive director of the Democratic Governors Association. You win some, you lose some, but Phil was always a true professional, and he did a good job leading his organization.

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Republican kingmaker Phil Cox sets eyes on 2016 race

Even as states wrestle with whether to expand their Medicaid programs under Obamacare, theyre already grappling with the looming 2017 date when the federal government begins to cut its support, which will force states to have to make tricky budget decisions.

It was always part of the deal the federal government would pony up 100 percent of the cost of expanding Medicaid, but only for the first few years. In 2017, the federal share would drop to 95 percent, and slide to 90 percent in 2020. That 10 percent amounts to tens of millions of dollars even for small states, and runs much larger for big states.

Its not like we have $78 million sitting on the shelf, said Utah state Rep. Jim Dunnigan, a Republican whos skeptical of expansion in his state, where Gov. Gary Herbert is touting it as a way of extending insurance to 58,000 people in the coverage gap a situation in which people make too much for Medicaid but too little for tax credits on the Obamacare exchanges.

SEE ALSO: Obamacare enrollment on federal exchange reaches nearly 6.4M

PHOTOS: Republican governors push to expand Medicaid

Mr. Herbert and other Republican governors looking to expand are now trying to find innovative ways to offset the costs the states will eventually have to bear, in order to convince skeptical state legislatures.

Some governors envision imposing fees on hospitals that will benefit from the expansion, while others are eyeing cigarette taxes.

But in their push for expansion, the governors never mention Obamacare by name, even as they take advantage of dollars the law offers for states that agree to offer Medicaid coverage to those making up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level.

Certainly, leveraging the federal dollars plays a role, said Alexia Poe, spokeswoman for Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, the latest Republican governor to unveil a GOP-friendly version of Medicaid expansion.

Mr. Haslam this month pitched his plan, Insure Tennessee, as a two-year pilot program. He said it wont tax Tennessees budget because hospitals have agreed to pick up any additional costs. The program will be terminated if commitments from the hospitals or federal government are not met.

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Republican governors push to expand Medicaid

The faces of the Republican Party's most ambitious members are changing.

Long criticized as the party of old white men, the GOP's next class of presidential contenders may include two Hispanic senators, an Indian-American governor, a female business leader and an African-American neurosurgeon. In a group that could exceed a dozen Republican White House prospects, all but a few are in their 40s or 50s, while one of the oldest white men is a fluent Spanish speaker whose wife is a native Mexican.

The diverse group is a point of pride for those Republicans who have long pushed for a welcoming "big tent" party.

"This is a diverse nation, and we need to be a diverse party," said Carly Fiorina, the former Hewlett-Packard chief executive and only Republican woman openly weighing a 2016 bid. "That doesn't mean we sacrifice our principles, but it means we need to look like and understand and empathize with the nation."

Republican strategists hope that a more diverse slate of candidates will help appeal to a growing minority population that has given Democrats a decided advantage in the last two presidential contests.

It's unclear, however, whether changing the faces of the GOP's messengers will be enough to take back the White House in 2016. As critics point out, Republicans have alienated some minority voters by pushing for voter identification laws that disproportionately affect nonwhites, while resisting comprehensive changes in the immigration and criminal justice systems.

"They're going to have to make a decision about whether they're going to build a meaningful multiracial coalition by respecting and defending the rights of all people in this country," said Benjamin Jealous, a former president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, "or whether they're going to continue to play this dog-whistle politics that have besmirched the Republican Party since the days of Barry Goldwater."

The Republican Party has struggled with attracting support from minorities since Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Goldwater, the Republican presidential nominee, opposed it. But Jealous and others suggest there are signs of hope in a crowded and diverse 2016 Republican class.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz are both Hispanic, while Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is the first Indian-American governor in the U.S.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush recently announced plans to "actively explore" a presidential bid. At 61, he is among the older would-be Republican candidates. Bush speaks fluent Spanish, is married to a native Mexican and lists as one of his signature issues an immigration overhaul that includes a pathway to citizenship for immigrants in the country illegally.

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A bigger tent? GOP faces minority challenge

The Republican Universiade. Day 1. WK75kg. MS Shevchenko Vadim.
Jerk 32+32kg - 85reps.

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The Republican Universiade. Day 1. WK75kg. MS Shevchenko Vadim. - Video

By News Services and Staff Reports December 26

James B. Edwards, South Carolinas first Republican governor since Reconstruction and later energy secretary for two years in the Reagan administration, died Dec.26 at his home in Mount Pleasant, S.C. He was 87.

His son-in-law, Ken Wingate, confirmed the death but did not disclose the cause.

Dr. Edwards, an oral surgeon, helped build the modern Republican Party in South Carolina in the 1960s, serving as Charleston County party chairman and supporting Barry Goldwaters 1964 presidential campaign. He later won a seat in the state senate and then, in 1974, was elected governor.

He was limited to a single four-year term under state law at the time. After his governorship, he came to Washington as President Ronald Reagans energy secretary.

When he entered the 1974 governors race, Dr. Edwards was not sure of his chances in the GOP primary against retired Army Gen. William C. Westmoreland, a well-known figure who had commanded U.S. troops in the Vietnam War. Dr. Edwards won the nomination but was still an underdog in what was then a predominantly Democratic state.

That year, however, Democrats were divided after the state supreme court ruled that the partys leading candidate, Charles D. Pug Ravenel, did not meet residency requirements to run for governor.

Dr. Edwards defeated U.S. Rep. Bryan Dorn, who became the Democratic nominee in a special convention, by about 17,500 votes.

In a 1999 Associated Press interview, Dr. Edwards said he particularly enjoyed working on economic development, education and energy issues as governor. During his tenure, an education finance act was passed and remains the basis for funding elementary and secondary schools in South Carolina.

Anything you wanted, you could ask anyone in the state to help you, Dr. Edwards recalled. I put away partisan politics when I got to Columbia. We had the whole Senate and the House, the vast majority working with us.

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James B. Edwards, S. Carolinas first Republican governor since Reconstruction, dies at 87