Latest news with #RepublicanStateConvention
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Josh McKoon gets backing from President Trump in Georgia GOP chairman's race; Harris County's Charlie Bailey now chairs state Dems
COLUMBUS, Ga. () — Georgia statewide politics has a decidedly West Georgia flavor. The new chairman of the state Democratic Party, Charlie Bailey, is from Harris County. State Republican Party Chairman Josh McKoon is a former state senator from Columbus. Bailey is in place going into the crucial 2026 election cycle. Josh McKoon is fighting to keep his job at the Republican State Convention next month. And McKoon got a powerful push in that direction late last week. President Donald Trump weighed in on the Georgia GOP race. He gave his full-throated endorsement of Josh McKoon in a May 8 social media post. The president's post read partly: 'Josh is 100 percent MAGA, and I know he will continue to do a fantastic job.' 'I really enjoyed the working relationship we had during the election campaign,' McKoon said. 'And I think the fact that you point out that he would weigh in on something like this shows you how important the president thinks the 2020 election is. And how important it is to him to have people he trusts in these positions to carry the ball into the endzone on behalf of our candidates.' Bailey, who was elected earlier this month to lead the Georgia Democrats, will fight McKoon every step of the way next year. 'I am not surprised.' he said of McKoon's endorsement from Trump. 'Josh has supported these MAGA policies and Donald Trump every step of the way, as is his right to do. Donald Trump probably owes him that.' The 2026 Georgia election will feature some compelling races, including Democrat Jon Ossoff's attempt to hold on to his U.S. Senate seat. Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced last week he will not challenge Ossoff. McKoon says the Republican bench is deep. 'And unlike the presidential election where we knew who are candidate was well ahead of time, and we were able to consolidate our party behind that candidate, President Trump,' McKoon said. 'This time it's more likely that you and I will be having this conversation in June of next year, 'OK, you got your nominee. Now, what are you going to do.' Bailey speculates why Kemp did not enter the race against Ossoff. 'People from Georgia ain't for Medicaid cuts, cutting HeadStart firing people from the CDC, cutting veterans benefits,' Bailey said. 'I hadn't talk to Gov. Kemp about this, but if I had to guess – if I was a betting man – he knows everything I just said is true. He doesn't want to be out there defending Donald Trump's actions on these things.' We are just 53 weeks away from next year's primaries. They are scheduled for May 19th, 2026. The Republican state Convention is set for June 6th and 7th. McKoon is facing opposition from David Cross of Gwinnett County. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump, Lee, Owens endorse Robert Axson in race for Utah Republican Party chair
SALT LAKE CITY () — President Donald Trump officially weighed in on Utah's race for chair of the state's Republican Party on Thursday, in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. Axson, who is running to retain his seat , has served as Chairman of the Utah Republican Party since 2023. In his endorsement, Trump said Republicans in the Beehive State have the opportunity to re-elect a 'fantastic Chairman.' Candidates for the State GOP chair debate convention system, logistics, and party unity ahead of state convention 'Robert Axson has dedicated his life to the Republican Party and the Great State of Utah. He is Strongly Supported by many, including Highly Respected Senator Mike Lee and Governor Spencer Cox. Robert Axson has my Complete and Total Endorsement for Re-Election as Chairman of the Utah Republican Party [sic.],' Trump wrote, adding in all capital letters that Axon will 'never let you down.' Utah Sen. Mike Lee said he stood with the President , emphasizing the Utah GOP needed to re-elect Axson as chairman. 'Rob Axson is not only one of the most effective state party chairmen we've ever had in Utah, but he's also one of the best in the entire country,' wrote Lee. 'He's uniformly respected and admired as a member of the RNC. He's an unusually dedicated, talented, and energetic person I've known and worked closely with him throughout the last 16 years, and he's one of the most decent people I've ever known.' Rep. Burgess Owens also , saying he was '100% correct,' adding that Axson has his full endorsement. Phil Lyman responded to the endorsements for his opponent in his own post on X, saying, 'MAGA is about America.' Utah House Majority leader resigns to take new role in Governor's Office 'My support for Donald Trump is not contingent on his support for me. We have work to do,' before taking a jab at his former gubernatorial opponent, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, by calling him a cheater. While Axson has not yet commented on his recent endorsements, ABC4's Chief Political Correspondent Lindsay Aerts sat down with him on , along with Convention Chair Thomas Wright, to break down the race and his from candidates who gather signatures to get on the ballot. That conversation can be watched live on Sunday, May 11, on ABC4. 'What's at stake (in the chair's race)? In my opinion, (it's) really what's the direction that we're going?' Axson said. 'Are we building a party that will be relevant for years to come that will impact generations?' Axson argued that so-called party 'purity tests' are counterproductive to that goal. 'I believe the Republican party can help deliver on that…to rescue our future, we have to grow that apparatus, we have to build the relevance. We can't be doing purity tests, we can't be limiting the size and impact of what the party can do, and so that's the case that I'm trying to bring the delegates of Utah.' Utah's Republican Party delegates will elect a Chairman during the upcoming Republican State Convention on Saturday, May 17, at the UCCU Center in Orem. Trump, Lee, Owens endorse Robert Axson in race for Utah Republican Party chair Making waves on land: How Luz Garcia is turning plastic waste into powerful change Officer not charged in 2023 fatal shooting of Sandy man in mental health crisis From the big screen to your living room screen 1 seriously injured after fall while rappelling at Zion National Park Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
USA Today
08-04-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
From Washington to Trump: Future, sitting and former presidents have visited Mohawk Valley
From Washington to Trump: Future, sitting and former presidents have visited Mohawk Valley When former President Barack Obama speaks at Hamilton College on Thursday evening, he'll be far from the first president — former, present or future — to visit the Mohawk Valley. George Washington himself visited Oneida County in 1783. That was before he became president, but at least six sitting presidents have visited the area: Grover Cleveland, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Harry S. Truman, Obama and President Donald Trump. Abraham Lincoln also visited Utica days before his inauguration. Here's a history of some local visits by future, current and former presidents: 1783. General George Washington, who would become president in 1789, visited the site of the Battle of Oriskany and later bought land in the region. Feb. 18,1861. The three-car train carrying President-Elect Abraham Lincoln on a 12-day journey from Springfield, Illinois to Washington, D.C. for his inauguration on March 4 stopped in Utica for 10 minutes. Lincoln spoke briefly on non-political matters to the crowd that had gathered in a snowstorm to see him. It was the same day that Jefferson Davis was sworn in as temporary president of the Confederate States of America. 1865. The funeral train carrying Lincoln's body back to Illinois after his assassination stopped in Utica for several minutes. The German Glee Club, forerunner to today's Utica Maennerchor, sang. April 21, 1884. A 25-year-old Theodore Roosevelt, a New York State assemblyman at the time, arrived in Utica two days before the Republican State Convention began at the Utica Opera House at Lafayette and Washington streets. By the end of the convention, Roosevelt had been elected as an at-large delegate to the Republican National Convention in Chicago, chosen to head the New York delegation in Chicago and drawn notice as an up-and-coming national politician. Roosevelt visited Utica often while serving in the state Assembly. 1887. President Glover Cleveland came to Clinton to celebrate its centennial. Cleveland had lived briefly in Clinton as a boy before the family moved to Fayetteville and then settled in Holland Patent. When he was first elected in 1884, his sister Rose had left her home in Holland Patent to serve as his First Lady for 15 months until Cleveland married Frances Folsom. 1890s. Benjamin Harrison, who left office in 1893, spent much of his time after retirement at his summer home on Second Lake near Old Forge. He and his wife Mary reportedly enjoyed shopping in downtown Utica. Aug. 8, 1908. Roosevelt, in his second term as president, dedicated the Robinson Memorial Library in Jordanville in Herkimer County. The library was a gift to the town from Roosevelt's sister Corinne Robinson and her husband Douglas, who lived in the area. 1912. President William Howard Taft came to Utica to attend the funeral of his vice president, James Schoolcraft Sherman, a two-decade Congressman for the area, who died on Oct. 30, 1912. Oct. 25, 1928. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in a tight race for governor at the time, attended a rally at Mohawk and Bleecker streets in Utica. The really was organized by Democratic Party leader Charles Donnelley and the head of East Utica's Democratic machine, Rufus Elefante. 1948. President Harry S. Truman's spoke in Utica as part of his 'whistle-stop' train tour that summer. He invited Mayor Boyd Golder into the presidential dining car for a chat. 1950s. Ronald Reagan, then the host of the TV series 'General Electric Theater,' drew large crowds when he visited the GE plants in Utica. 1960. Then presidential candidate John F. Kennedy Jr. spoke at Utica Memorial Auditorium and attended an outdoor rally in front of the courthouse in Rome. 1974. Vice President Gerald Ford attended a cocktail party in his honor at the Oneida County Airport along with Utica Mayor Edward Hanna. Ford had previously visited Utica as Speaker of the House to speak to Republican Party groups. And in 1966, then House Minority Leader Ford spoke to 1,200 people at the annual Lincoln Day Dinner at The Beeches in Rome. 1983. Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush visited Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome, hosted by his friend U.S. Rep. Sherwood Boehlert. 1988. George W. Bush campaigned for his father during a two-hour stopover at Oneida County Airport that included a visit to Oriskany High School. 2001. Jimmy Carter spoke at Hamilton College. Nov. 9, 2004. Bill Clinton spoke to a crowd of 4,600 at Hamilton College. Another 1,100 watched on closed circuit TV on campus. May 22, 2014. While in office, Barack Obama flew into Griffiss International Airport in Rome, flew by helicopter to a helipad outside Cooperstown and was driven by a motorcade to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown where he gave a 15-minute speech on tourism. Cooperstown schools closed early so students could watch the motorcade drive through town. April 12, 2016. Presidential candidate Donald Trump spoke to a crowd of 5,000 at a rally at Griffiss International Airport. Aug. 13, 2018. President Trump flew into Griffiss again, on Air Force One this time, and was met by a crowd that clapped, cheered and chanted, 'USA! USA!' He met with Brian and Lynnette Wyman, parents of Oneida County Deputy Kurt Wyman who was killed in the line of duty in 2011. Trump then traveled by motorcade to the Doubletree Hilton Hotel Utica to attend a private fundraiser for U.S. Rep. Claudia Tenney. Trump supporters rallied on the west side of Genesee Street while a crowd of protesters lined the east side of the street. April 3, 2025. Obama speaks at Hamilton College in Clinton. The information in this article is pieced together from the Observer-Dispatch archives. Much of the information comes from columns written by Frank Tomaino, a former O-D city editor and long-time history columnist who died on Jan. 3.
