Summerville, GA – Chattooga GOP Chair and GRA Member Jennifer Tudor announced a new bylaw amendment adopted by the county party in early November that specified how the Chattooga County GOP could exercise their accountability power and prevent known RINOs from running on the Republican ballot. Notice of the bylaw change was posted in the local courthouse for all to see. This ruffled quite a few feathers and made front page news in the rural community despite the fact that the Democrat Party of Chattooga County had previously exercised this same power to prevent a candidate from running on the Democrat ballot.
Tudor issued a statement on behalf of the party:
“Republican voters deserve truth and transparency. The Chattooga County GOP believes that when a candidate is labeled a Republican, they ought to represent the principles of the Republican Party such as limited government, low taxes, the right to life, gun rights, etc. (See GAGOP Platform: https://gagop.org/resolutions/).
“Should we be forced to accept a candidate who claims to be Republican but supports abortion, gun control, big government and high taxes?
“Struggling families in our community continue to be hurt by high taxes, inflation and wasteful government programs. Deceptive politicians should not be allowed to take advantage of poor, low information voters.
“With this bylaw in effect, the people of Chattooga county can rest confident knowing that, when a candidate runs on the Republican ballot, they will work to truly advance Republican policy.
“We believe, as members of the CCRP, we have a responsibility to the voters of Chattooga County to ensure the candidates on their Republican ballots are true Republicans that believe in the Republican platform. We strive to be worthy of this trust and believe this bylaw amendment will equip us to better serve the people of Chattooga County.”
The bylaw amendment establishes a “County Qualifying Committee” whose written approval is required before a candidate may be placed on the Republican ballot.
The statement from the Chattooga GOP also referenced the constitutional authority under which a political party may exercise this power – the First Amendment right to Freedom of Association. The statement included a quote from Justice William Brennan:
“There can be no clearer example of an intrusion into the internal structure or affairs of an association than a regulation that forces the group to accept members it does not desire. Such a regulation may impair the ability of the original members to express only those views that brought them together.”-Roberts v. U.S. Jaycees, 468 U.S. 609 (1984) U.S. Justice Brennan (also quoted by the late U.S. Chief Justice William Rehnquist in the case Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, 530 U.S. 640 (2000)).
“RINO policies hurt real people,” said Nathaniel Darnell from the GRA. “GOP leaders shouldn’t just stand by and watch families and communities be destroyed by harmful policies and politicians masquerading under the Republican label. This is a big win for the accountability movement in our state and we applaud Jennifer and her team for their courage.”
Chattooga County is one of several counties where local Republican Party leaders have indicated they will begin exercising their accountability power and serving as the gatekeeper for the low information voters in their County.
One comment
Ruffled a lot of feathers, so sad that the cheat is so strong in some people. I applaud my fellow Republicans