Latest news with #GeorgiaRepublicanParty
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Georgia GOP's attempt to block Brad Raffensperger from running as a Republican may go nowhere
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's Republican Party says Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger should not be able to run under the party's banner anymore, but the party's chairman says the attempt to kick out the state's chief election official is going nowhere. Delegates voted overwhelmingly at the state GOP convention on Saturday in Dalton to adopt a series of resolutions, including one declaring the party shall not 'take any action to allow Brad Raffensperger to qualify as a Republican' for future elections. The resolution shows the deep hostility many Republican activists have toward Raffensperger following his refusal to help Donald Trump overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia. Alex Johnson chairs the Georgia Republican Assembly, a group that tries to influence the party. He said Raffensperger has been 'generally ignoring and disrespecting' the party, including attempts to change the election system, and that Republicans should be allowed to divorce Raffensperger. 'He doesn't listen to anything that the Republican party has asked him to do,' Johnson said Monday. 'He is hostile and has been hostile towards our presidential nominee and now a person who is president.' But party Chairman Josh McKoon told reporters after the convention ended that while the resolution 'presents the sense of the convention on what should happen,' state law requires the party to allow Raffensperger to run as a Republican. 'I don't really see a way for the Georgia Republican Party to decline someone the opportunity to qualify,' McKoon said. Spokespeople for Raffensperger did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday. The two-term secretary of state has said he's considering running for governor or U.S. Senate in 2026. Georgia has no party registration and its primary elections allow anyone to vote in the party nominating contest of their choice. That means it can be hard to tell who is truly a Republican or a Democrat. Some Republicans favor a system of voter registration by party and primaries that allow only party members to vote. They also say party officials should decide which candidates should be allowed to run as Republicans. The Georgia Republican Party's executive committee voted in January to expel former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan after Duncan endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris for president. The committee voted to ban Duncan from party events and said it would not qualify Duncan to run as a Republican in the future. But the party in 2023 rejected an attempt to ban ideological traitors from primary ballots. Last year, judges blocked attempts by a county party in northwest Georgia to act as gatekeepers for local candidates. In a ruling regarding Catoosa County, the state Supreme Court did not get to the heart of the dispute over whether parities can create rules for qualifying candidates in primary elections beyond those found in Georgia law. Those who push that point of view claim being forced to qualify everyone who signs up violates their freedom of association under the U.S. Constitution. 'You can't force a Baptist church to ordain a Buddhist or a Muslim to be a Baptist minister,' said Nathaniel Darnell, president of the Georgia Republican Assembly. 'By the same token, you can't force somebody who is counteracting the Republican principles and objectives to be Republican.' A federal judge rejected that argument, but some Catoosa County Republicans have appealed the case. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has not yet ruled. Republicans in Chattooga and Pickens counties passed similar rules. Those who want to act as gatekeepers generally are seeking to move the party to the right. The state convention on Saturday, for example, called for repealing both the state income tax and local property taxes. Those who hold a different view say primary election voters should decide who's a true Republican. U.S. District Judge Billy Ray, a former chair of the Gwinnett County Republican Party, wrote that a party's associational rights are not 'absolute' and voters should decide primaries when he rejected the Catoosa County case now on appeal. 'Trying to limit who can run in a primary seems inconsistent with the purpose of a primary to start with,' Ray wrote in a footnote. 'Perhaps the Catoosa Republican Party doesn't believe that the citizens of Catoosa County can for themselves intelligently decide which candidates best embody the principles of the Republican Party.'
San Francisco Chronicle
4 days ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Georgia GOP's attempt to block Brad Raffensperger from running as a Republican may go nowhere
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's Republican Party says Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger should not be able to run under the party's banner anymore, but the party's chairman says the attempt to kick out the state's chief election official is going nowhere. Delegates voted overwhelmingly at the state GOP convention on Saturday in Dalton to adopt a series of resolutions, including one declaring the party shall not 'take any action to allow Brad Raffensperger to qualify as a Republican' for future elections. The resolution shows the deep hostility many Republican activists have toward Raffensperger following his refusal to help Donald Trump overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia. Alex Johnson chairs the Georgia Republican Assembly, a group that tries to influence the party. He said Raffensperger has been 'generally ignoring and disrespecting' the party, including attempts to change the election system, and that Republicans should be allowed to divorce Raffensperger. 'He doesn't listen to anything that the Republican party has asked him to do,' Johnson said Monday. 'He is hostile and has been hostile towards our presidential nominee and now a person who is president.' But party Chairman Josh McKoon told reporters after the convention ended that while the resolution 'presents the sense of the convention on what should happen,' state law requires the party to allow Raffensperger to run as a Republican. 'I don't really see a way for the Georgia Republican Party to decline someone the opportunity to qualify,' McKoon said. Spokespeople for Raffensperger did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday. The two-term secretary of state has said he's considering running for governor or U.S. Senate in 2026. Georgia has no party registration and its primary elections allow anyone to vote in the party nominating contest of their choice. That means it can be hard to tell who is truly a Republican or a Democrat. Some Republicans favor a system of voter registration by party and primaries that allow only party members to vote. They also say party officials should decide which candidates should be allowed to run as Republicans. The Georgia Republican Party's executive committee voted in January to expel former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan after Duncan endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris for president. The committee voted to ban Duncan from party events and said it would not qualify Duncan to run as a Republican in the future. But the party in 2023 rejected an attempt to ban ideological traitors from primary ballots. Last year, judges blocked attempts by a county party in northwest Georgia to act as gatekeepers for local candidates. In a ruling regarding Catoosa County, the state Supreme Court did not get to the heart of the dispute over whether parities can create rules for qualifying candidates in primary elections beyond those found in Georgia law. Those who push that point of view claim being forced to qualify everyone who signs up violates their freedom of association under the U.S. Constitution. 'You can't force a Baptist church to ordain a Buddhist or a Muslim to be a Baptist minister,' said Nathaniel Darnell, president of the Georgia Republican Assembly. 'By the same token, you can't force somebody who is counteracting the Republican principles and objectives to be Republican.' A federal judge rejected that argument, but some Catoosa County Republicans have appealed the case. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has not yet ruled. Republicans in Chattooga and Pickens counties passed similar rules. Those who want to act as gatekeepers generally are seeking to move the party to the right. The state convention on Saturday, for example, called for repealing both the state income tax and local property taxes. Those who hold a different view say primary election voters should decide who's a true Republican. U.S. District Judge Billy Ray, a former chair of the Gwinnett County Republican Party, wrote that a party's associational rights are not 'absolute' and voters should decide primaries when he rejected the Catoosa County case now on appeal. 'Trying to limit who can run in a primary seems inconsistent with the purpose of a primary to start with,' Ray wrote in a footnote. 'Perhaps the Catoosa Republican Party doesn't believe that the citizens of Catoosa County can for themselves intelligently decide which candidates best embody the principles of the Republican Party.'
Winnipeg Free Press
4 days ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Georgia GOP's attempt to block Brad Raffensperger from running as a Republican may go nowhere
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's Republican Party says Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger should not be able to run under the party's banner anymore, but the party's chairman says the attempt to kick out the state's chief election official is going nowhere. Delegates voted overwhelmingly at the state GOP convention on Saturday in Dalton to adopt a series of resolutions, including one declaring the party shall not 'take any action to allow Brad Raffensperger to qualify as a Republican' for future elections. The resolution shows the deep hostility many Republican activists have toward Raffensperger following his refusal to help Donald Trump overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia. Alex Johnson chairs the Georgia Republican Assembly, a group that tries to influence the party. He said Raffensperger has been 'generally ignoring and disrespecting' the party, including attempts to change the election system, and that Republicans should be allowed to divorce Raffensperger. 'He doesn't listen to anything that the Republican party has asked him to do,' Johnson said Monday. 'He is hostile and has been hostile towards our presidential nominee and now a person who is president.' But party Chairman Josh McKoon told reporters after the convention ended that while the resolution 'presents the sense of the convention on what should happen,' state law requires the party to allow Raffensperger to run as a Republican. 'I don't really see a way for the Georgia Republican Party to decline someone the opportunity to qualify,' McKoon said. Spokespeople for Raffensperger did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday. The two-term secretary of state has said he's considering running for governor or U.S. Senate in 2026. Georgia has no party registration and its primary elections allow anyone to vote in the party nominating contest of their choice. That means it can be hard to tell who is truly a Republican or a Democrat. Some Republicans favor a system of voter registration by party and primaries that allow only party members to vote. They also say party officials should decide which candidates should be allowed to run as Republicans. The Georgia Republican Party's executive committee voted in January to expel former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan after Duncan endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris for president. The committee voted to ban Duncan from party events and said it would not qualify Duncan to run as a Republican in the future. But the party in 2023 rejected an attempt to ban ideological traitors from primary ballots. Last year, judges blocked attempts by a county party in northwest Georgia to act as gatekeepers for local candidates. In a ruling regarding Catoosa County, the state Supreme Court did not get to the heart of the dispute over whether parities can create rules for qualifying candidates in primary elections beyond those found in Georgia law. Those who push that point of view claim being forced to qualify everyone who signs up violates their freedom of association under the U.S. Constitution. 'You can't force a Baptist church to ordain a Buddhist or a Muslim to be a Baptist minister,' said Nathaniel Darnell, president of the Georgia Republican Assembly. 'By the same token, you can't force somebody who is counteracting the Republican principles and objectives to be Republican.' A federal judge rejected that argument, but some Catoosa County Republicans have appealed the case. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has not yet ruled. Republicans in Chattooga and Pickens counties passed similar rules. Those who want to act as gatekeepers generally are seeking to move the party to the right. The state convention on Saturday, for example, called for repealing both the state income tax and local property taxes. Those who hold a different view say primary election voters should decide who's a true Republican. U.S. District Judge Billy Ray, a former chair of the Gwinnett County Republican Party, wrote that a party's associational rights are not 'absolute' and voters should decide primaries when he rejected the Catoosa County case now on appeal. 'Trying to limit who can run in a primary seems inconsistent with the purpose of a primary to start with,' Ray wrote in a footnote. 'Perhaps the Catoosa Republican Party doesn't believe that the citizens of Catoosa County can for themselves intelligently decide which candidates best embody the principles of the Republican Party.'
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ossoff sets fundraising record as Georgia GOP brings in $300K at Spring Gala
Democrats and Republicans are boasting of their fundraising success early in what is an off-year for elections in Georgia. U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., raised more than $11 million during the first quarter of this year, the most ever raised by a Senate incumbent in the first three months of an off-year. Meanwhile, the Georgia Republican Party brought in President Donald Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump to its Spring Gala, which raised more than $300,000. Ossoff received donations from 156 of Georgia's 159 counties, with an average contribution of $32 from nearly 260,000 donors. Ossoff will be up for re-election to a second six-year term in the Senate next year. 'I'm grateful to the hundreds of thousands of record-shattering supporters who have already joined what will be the biggest and most relentless turnout effort in Georgia history,' he said. Republicans have yet to field a challenger to Ossoff. Potential GOP candidates are waiting to see whether term-limited Gov. Brian Kemp enter the race. If he does, he would be the clear frontrunner on the Republican side. Last week's Spring Gala was the Georgia Republican Party's largest fundraiser in the last two years. More than 300 attending the event heard from GOP luminaries including Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, state Insurance Commissioner John King, and a host of Republican state lawmakers. Headliner Lara Trump is a former co-chair of the Republican National Committee. 'I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Lara Trump for joining us in Georgia, just as she did so many times in 2024,' Georgia Republican Chairman Josh McKoon said. 'I also want to recognize all of our sponsors and donors whose generosity made this incredible night possible.'
Politico
03-03-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Black Republicans could stamp their mark on the midterms
TOP LINE The early weeks of Donald Trump's term have brought a flurry of executive orders including ones seeking to purge diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from the federal government. But with Trump's approval ratings hovering near 90 percent among Republican voters, the party sees its best opportunity — perhaps ever — to elect a slate of Black candidates running for statewide office, including three currently running in Southern states either in 2025 or the 2026 midterms. Rep. Byron Donalds, after weeks of speculation, made it official last Tuesday with the launch of his gubernatorial bid in Florida. A week prior, former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced his intent to run for the retiring Republican leader Mitch McConnell's Senate seat. In Virginia, which holds gubernatorial elections this year, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears bolstered her candidacy by unveiling endorsements from more than 50 state and local officials. On top of that, Rep. John James of Michigan, according to an adviser who was granted anonymity to speak on the congressman's future plans, is nearing a decision on a gubernatorial run, and Republicans are seeing polls that have them high on his primary prospects. James last month ruled out launching a bid for Michigan's open Senate seat. 'That's [virtually] every national Black figure potentially getting a promotion in the next two years,' said Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas), a close friend of Donalds. Both lawmakers did Black outreach for Trump during the presidential campaign. He added himself to this list, pointing to the reported headwinds his state's senior Sen. John Cornyn faces next year — and the possibility of him opting to retire. Hunt did not rule out a Senate run under the right circumstances and largely credits Trump's commanding sway over the party as the reason more Black Republicans are seen as viable candidates. Trump, like no other Republican in modern memory, has had success in mobilizing Black voters, particularly Black men. So Black candidates who receive Trump's endorsement, like Donalds did and how both Cameron and James have in the past, almost instantly become odds-on favorites to secure their party's nomination. On top of that, Donalds, James and Cameron are all running in states Trump won in November. Hunt said his only trepidation about the prospects of these statewide candidates is that they are seeking higher office when Trump's name will not be on the ballot. 'I am kind of concerned with President Trump not being on top of the ticket from a turnout standpoint,' he said. 'Regardless of who is running, turnout is going to be an issue because people turn out for President Trump.' Janelle King, the former deputy director of the Georgia Republican Party, said a Trump endorsement for these candidates would likely make the difference, likely to clear the primary field. So far only Donalds has received it, but it is no secret what Trump is looking for in order to receive his blessing. 'Trump wants one who is loyal and someone who can do the job and not make them look bad,' said King, a member of the Georgia Board of Elections. She added that Cameron in Kentucky and James of Michigan already have relationships with the president. 'If it happens to be that you're a minority you get the bump from that, then cool. But I don't think he cares about what you look like as much as he cares about how your results affect me?' It's still unclear if Black Republican candidates will find success in 2025 and 2026. One question is whether Trump's improvement with Black voters in the previous election will transfer to Black candidates running statewide. Another is whether Trump will be more selective when it comes to who he backs. In the past, his controversial picks have included some prominent Black candidates who flopped. Herschel Walker, the former NFL running back who Trump handpicked to challenge Sen. Raphael Warnock in Georgia in 2022 could not overcome a series of scandals. Nor could Mark Robinson, Trump's choice for North Carolina governor last year. OJ Okela, a longtime GOP operative in Kentucky, said Trump's likely learned from previous endorsement misses, adding that the current crop of candidates have been vetted by voters in their states. 'I think the benefit that each of these candidates has is that they are tested,' he said. 'They themselves have run for and won big time state races in the case of Daniel [Cameron] and Winsome Sears. With Byron Donalds, he's a proven commodity implementing the president's agenda … and so has John James.' For Black Republican candidates this year and next, Okela said, 'I think there's going to be a mood and an enthusiasm that is going to be infectious.' Happy Monday. Hit me up for tips, complaints or whiskey recommendations at bbooker@ and @brakktonbooker. Days until the 2025 election: 246 Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You'll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day's biggest stories. CAMPAIGN INTEL ANOTHER RAUCOUS TOWN HALL: The scene: A small hospital cafeteria in Oakley, Kansas. The target: Sen. Roger Marshall. 'As soon as Marshall entered the meeting, people booed and started peppering him with questions and comments about the war in Ukraine, the hollowing of federal agencies and rural health care,' writes to The Lawrence Times. After taking a few questions, the senator abruptly left the meeting. RED STATES ROCKET TOWARD NASA STANDOFF: NASA's lease is up in Washington in 2028, and Florida and Texas are the locales that appear to be competing to be the space agency's new home. POLITICO's Sam Skove and Isa Domínguez break down the pros and cons of each state being the new launch pad for the agency. PLOT THICKENS IN NYC MAYORAL RACE: The scandal-plagued ex-New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo launched his mayoral bid to replace Eric Adams, the current controversial incumbent. POLITICO's Nick Reisman details Cuomo's 17-minute announcement video and why this spells even more trouble for Adams, who draws his base of support from similar voting blocs including the working class, Black and Orthodox Jewish voters. GEORGIA LAWMAKERS MOVE TO INVESTIGATE STACEY ABRAMS: The Georgia Senate is moving forward with plans to launch a probe into voter engagement groups launched by Stacey Abrams, the state's two-time Democratic gubernatorial nominee. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the investigation is moving forward 'after the organization acknowledged it illegally aided her 2018 campaign for governor.' BERNING UP THE TRAIL: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is slated to stump in Republican-leaning districts in Wisconsin later this week, the latest stop in his so-called 'Fighting Oligarchy: Where We Go From Here' tour. Sanders won the Democratic presidential primary in the state in 2016. As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes, his visit comes weeks ahead of Wisconsinites heading to the polls in April to vote on which party controls the state Supreme Court. CONTENTIOUS CONTEST TO REPLACE ALSOBROOKS: Voters head to the polls Tuesday in Prince George's County, Maryland's second largest county, to fill the county executive post vacated by newly minted Sen. Angela Alsobrooks. The heavily Democratic district has 11 candidates vying for the vacancy, according to the Washington Post, with both Alsobrooks and Gov. Wes Moore backing different candidates QUOTE OF THE DAY 'I want to be very clear: while I will work with anyone, I'll bow down to no one,' said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a possible 2028 Democratic White House hopeful, during a speech announcing state aid and programs for fired federal workers in Maryland. It was a not-so-veiled critique of President Donald Trump.'This is not patriotism, this is cruelty.'
