Changing the guard: Bonneville GOP elects new leadership

IDAHO FALLS — Following a landslide triumph by nan “Empower Bonneville Voters” conjugation connected May 21, nan precocious elected Bonneville County GOP’s precinct committee officers met astatine nan Shilo Inn to ballot for caller activity successful a marathon, nine-hour reorganization gathering Thursday.

Forty-six of nan 50 precinct committee officers were coming astatine nan meeting.

“We are very overmuch successful favour of having nan voters determine who’s Republican enough.”

Seventy-six percent, aliases 38 retired of 50 of nan precinct committee officers connected nan Bonneville County Republican Central Committee are from nan coalition, nan mostly of whom are serving for nan first time. The run signs and flyers of those candidates were mostly funded by Gem States Conservatives, a statewide PAC started by erstwhile Idaho GOP officials Tom Luna and Trent Clark.

RELATED | Future of nan Bonneville County GOP up for grabs this election

“The voters put america successful present to amended correspond them, and we’re going to return that to nan (Idaho GOP State) convention. We’ll spot what happens erstwhile we get there,” said Michael Colson, nan recently elected BCRCC chairman. “I deliberation it’s evident we are very overmuch successful favour of having nan voters determine who’s Republican enough. I deliberation we each ran connected that, and that’s going to beryllium our message.”

Colson will beryllium succeeding Nick Contos arsenic president of nan Bonneville GOP Central Committee.

“To beryllium capable to swipe shoulders pinch truthful galore bully patriots has been a very awesome privilege successful my life,” Contos said. “Serving arsenic a precinct serviceman to shape a governmental party, location is nary pay. There’s nary prestige aliases fame. There’s nary authorities powerfulness to speak of. There was an unthinkable magnitude of criticism, successful my eyes, often unduly and unfair. But nan group who service arsenic precinct officers service because they judge successful nan values of nan Republican Party … debased taxes, accepted family values, smaller government, safe and unafraid communities, each nan principles that specify Republicans that are outlined successful our platform.”

Contos started nan gathering by swearing successful nan recently elected PCOs.

Bonneville County Commissioner and Precinct 55 Precinct Committeeman Jon Walker said 12 of nan sitting PCOs had served successful nan erstwhile cardinal committee.

Throughout Thursday night, nan “Empower Bonneville Voters” conjugation mostly voted arsenic a bloc successful support of nan caller leadership, who person promised to: “1. Welcome caller and young Republicans. 2. Respect nan voter’s campaigner choices 3. Support caller statement leaders who activity for Idaho Republican voters 4. End nan kangaroo courts and purity tests,” according to their website.

However, erstwhile BCRCC First Vice Chairwoman Diane Jensen objected to nan caller coalition’s methodology for selecting their leadership.

“Each of nan caller PCOs was fixed a database of who precisely to ballot for nan executive committee, and precisely who to ballot for each of nan delegate positions,” Jensen said. “They had an existent insubstantial list, and they’re conscionable going down nan list. They person nary volition of having a large shelter aliases moving together pinch anybody from nan erstwhile management — nan erstwhile committee. It’s not ever been a complete turnover for illustration this. We person immoderate new, immoderate old, and we activity together, we study together, and we vote. I’ve ne'er seen it hap for illustration this before.”

Walker disagreed nan conjugation had acted improperly by voting together.

“When we cognize that we person a database of decently vetted candidates arsenic delegates, we’re going to activity from that decently vetted list, and debar each nan wasted clip that we saw from nominations that didn’t travel from that database for group that didn’t person nan forms turned successful and group who didn’t want to beryllium nominated,” he said.

The chat during nan gathering was astatine times heated, exposing clear divides betwixt nan PCOs who served pinch nan erstwhile Bonneville County GOP activity and nan guidance of nan caller majority. Any precinct committee serviceman could nominate personification to a position, and each candidates were fixed 2 minutes to reside nan body.

The caller precinct committee officers selected nan following:

• Kevin Casper arsenic first vice chairman
• Kathryn Hitch arsenic 2nd vice chairwoman
• William Athay arsenic 3rd vice chairman
• Bryon Reed arsenic 4th vice chairman
• Erin Bingham arsenic nan authorities committeewoman
• Bruce Loertscher arsenic authorities committeeman
• Heather Rich arsenic secretary
• Alisa Prudent arsenic treasurer
• Carter Harrison arsenic younker committeeperson
• Tom West arsenic veteran’s affairs representative

The committee besides selected 35 full delegates positive alternates to correspond nan region astatine nan Idaho GOP statement normal scheduled for June 13 to 15 successful Coeur d’Alene.

The BCRCC’s precinct committee officers are sworn successful astatine nan commencement of Thursday’s meeting. | David Pace, EastIdahoNews.com

After astir 8 hours of deliberations, nan PCOs separated into legislative districts to prime caller activity for each legislative territory committee. Maria Hatch was chosen arsenic nan Legislative District 32 chairwoman, replacing nan erstwhile Chairman Doyle Beck. Janalee Nelson was elected arsenic Legislative District 32 vice chairwoman pinch Cindy Walker arsenic secretary.

In Legislative District 33, Idaho Falls City Councilman Kirk Larsen was elected arsenic chairman, replacing Jilene Burger, who ran unsuccessfully against Marco Erickson for Seat 33B. Skyler Johns was chosen arsenic Legislative District 33 vice president and Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper will service arsenic secretary.

The anterior Legislative District 32 and District 33 committees had garnered nationalist attraction for nan typical investigative committee and Article XX, which were Idaho GOP level enforcement hearings that resulted successful nan censure of Sens. Kevin Cook, Dave Lent and Reps. Stephanie Mickelsen and Marco Erickson. Despite nan hearings, each of nan legislators were re-elected successful nan Republican superior predetermination by Bonneville County voters connected May 21.

The caller cardinal committee besides passed a solution to reside nan May 25 transportation of costs that emptied their slope relationship of each but $100. In their last charismatic act, nan erstwhile BCRCC voted 29-22 to donate $55,786 to nan Idaho GOP to conflict classed prime voting/the unfastened primaries inaugural and salary for a $20,000 authorities normal luncheon.

RELATED | Bonneville GOP gives distant astir of its money during closed-door meeting, 2 days earlier transportation of power

The caller committee’s solution states, “WHEREAS nan financial decisions of May 28 were retired of bid pinch nan bylaws of nan assemblage (no agenda, nary transcript of solution provided successful beforehand to nan body) and pinch Roberts Rules of Order (2/3 voting request was not exercised to waive announcement connected an agenda); and WHEREAS nan financial decisions were made by concealed ballot; and WHEREAS nan financial decisions do not correspond nan desires aliases intents of this body: … The existent BCRCC requests nan Idaho State Republican Party refund nan money sent to them arsenic it does not bespeak nan existent will of nan duly elected BCRCC.”

Overall, Jensen took objection to really nan gathering was conducted.

“The first bid of business that these caller PCOs conducted was to disregard and break their bylaws by allowing PCOs who did not fulfill nan obligations lined retired successful nan bylaws to beryllium capable to vote,” said Diane Jensen, erstwhile BCRCC first vice chairwoman. “They disregarded those and voted to let those PCOs to vote.”

She said nan BCRCC has been sued antecedently by nan authorities statement for “disregarding” its bylaws.

But Colson responded that 3 PCOs prohibited from voting by existent statement bylaws – Brian Saunders and Sid Hamberlin, who had not turned successful Integrity successful Affiliation forms to nan statement earlier nan election; and Sean Coletti, who had only registered arsenic a Republican successful March — voluntarily recused themselves from voting to guarantee nan integrity of nan process.

“We were capable to get done nan business and activity towards … wherever nan Bonneville County Central Committee is going to move to nan future,” Kevin Casper said. “(We) conducted a batch of business to get nan delegate slate and nan candidates to get nan executive committee and nan legislative districts organized. Although location were immoderate affectional moments successful nan meeting, we were capable to navigate nan challenges and yet move guardant successful a meaningful way.”

Colson said nan meeting’s format allowed each to beryllium heard who wished to speak.

“This is astir apt 1 of nan longest sessions astir apt successful nan full state,” Colson said. “But I deliberation we did it consistently. We did it fairly. We gave group an opportunity to definitive what was important to them. I learned a batch tonight, conscionable by listening to immoderate of nan speeches. I look guardant to having much of that, and picking up each kinds of bully things that group person to stock and offer.”