In between those two there were back-to-back Republicans with Reagan/Bush, then another two terms of W after Clinton that all fought against the interests of workers rights. There were massive campaigns disengaging Gen X from politics, not unlike the “genocide Joe” and “BoTh SiDeS” arguments of today.
Since Reagan, every Republican win coincides with low Democratic voter turnout. They don’t need to convince you to vote Republican, just that your candidate isn’t worth showing up for.