If you're looking for silver linings in the wake of Tuesday's election, here is one you might take comfort in.

While there was, ever so unfortunately, a blue wave on Tuesday, Republican policies performed quite well on the ballot.

As reported by National Review, referendums on guarding election security succeeded in state after state. So did measures keeping biological men out of women's sports.

Voters in Alaska, Arkansas, Kansas, South Dakota and West Virginia approved measures limiting voting to U.S. citizens. Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio wrote voter ID into their state constitutions.

And Arizona and Nebraska passed measures keeping biological men from competing in women's sports.

But Republican candidates did not have that same success.

Why?

Interpreting these outcomes comes with countless potential explanations, but one thing we can be certain of in this instance is that these conservative policies are popular enough to win on a ballot initiative.

So maybe the problem lies with those carrying the political message.

People loathe politicians.

Insider trading. Lack of principled decision-making. Political speak. Refusing to take accountability. Campaigning about problems instead of trying to actually fix them.

These are all things Americans hate about politicians. And I'm just scratching the surface.

They trust conservative ideas, but not the elected Republicans who ostensibly hold them.

And I would say that is both fair and reasonable. I feel the same way.

Republicans are often weak. Unprincipled. Cowardly. Uninspiring. In fact, I recently talked about this on the Toddcast.

It was part of my final plea to voters: vote Republican, even though I know you will have to hold your nose when casting your ballot.

I said this because the party, imperfect though it clearly is, is the best mechanism that we have to fix what is politically wrong with America.

The system I endorse is rather simple: vote for Republicans in November, and work like crazy to give voters more conservative options between now and the next Election Day.

Not enough people agreed with this or acted upon it this election cycle.

But seeing conservative principles win on the ballot gives me hope that maybe, moving forward, they will.

And that’s a silver lining I’ll happily take.

Most Americans start thinking about elections during the general election season.

This is a big mistake, because by then it's too late to have any input on who is going to actually be on the ballot.

Those who understand this start paying attention during primary season, hoping to have a say about who is on the ballot in the general election.

But even this is not enough today.

Principled conservatives need to think about shaping the next ballot now.

Listen, I understand what we're up against, and winning control of the GOP isn't going to be a cakewalk for conservatives.

There are country club Republicans and wealthy donors who have been patiently “waiting their turn” to run the party and get their nomination.

People have been playing the game, proving that they aren't there to ruffle feathers within the GOP.

They seem to think that if they play by the party's rules, don't cause a scene, and go along to get along, they'll eventually be given an opportunity to run. And people who think like this are often the very kind of Republican that is uninspiring, unprincipled and weak.

There are far too many Republicans who simply think this is how politics works — and how it should work.

And in one sense, they're right.

Party politics is a mess. And there's a reason why George Washington hated the very idea of political parties.

But it's also the way the American system works.

We can't fix every problem in America today, and fighting to change the two-party system is not the fight we should be focused on right now.

What we should realize is that the best avenue for conservatives to have political impact and change America for the better runs through the GOP.

So let's not fight against it.

Instead, let's participate in it.

Let's attend meetings.

Let's meet the leaders.

Let’s make our voices heard at events.

And let’s commit to following this process:

One step at a time.

This fight is never going to end in our lifetimes.

Accept it, and do everything you can to make sure we hand the next generation the best version of America and the Republican Party that we possibly can.

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