Today we feature columns from the two candidates who are running to head up the organization of California’s 58 Republican County Chairmen, aptly called the Republican County Chairman’s Association.
I asked the current President of the CCA, Tom Del Becarro of Contra Costa County, to give FR readers a quick description of the group. In Tom’s own style, he penned this:
The County Chairman’s Association (“CCA”) is the association of all of our County Chairs. At its best, it provides ongoing training to incoming Chairs and communicates our successes and areas for opportunities to each Chair so that they may benefit from the collective wisdom of its individual leaders. It also plays the vital role of helping to coordinate our statewide election activities.
In the last four years, the Association has grown in stature and influence. It has become the place for our leaders to be heard as well providing our party with future leaders like Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries formerly the Riverside County Chairman and Ron Nehring, our future Party Chair and the current San Diego Chair.
In the years ahead, the challenge will be for the CCA to continue its upward climb and to return our party to the dedicated volunteers. I trust our new leadership will do just that.
The two candidates are Linda Boyd, the Chairman of the Los Angeles County Republican Party, and Keen Butcher, the Chairman of the Santa Clara County Republican Party. Interestingly, both head up GOP organizations in massive, highly populated counties that have Democrat majorities. The race between the two has been very intense, with a lot of lobbying taking place among the 58 Chairmen who will be deciding the outcome. At times, the race has taken a rather negative course. The race does not really seem to be shaping up on ideological grounds (as some Party races will do), but rather on which candidate is going to be able to successfully convince their colleagues that they have the best plans to help County Party organizations have the resources they need to do their jobs most effectively. I think there is also some healthy debate about the role that each would play as a member of the CRP’s governing Board of Directors. From what I can tell, this race is a real donnybrook, with both candidates easily within a stone’s throw of victory. Neither candidate was really interested in releasing a list to the FlashReport of which County Chairmen has endorsed them. This indicates a politically-charged environment where, like a high-stakes poker match, you don’t want to lay out your cards too early.
Enjoy their columns, and if you are going to the GOP Convention, don’t look for a lot of "Butcher" or "Boyd" signs (well, not Linda Boyd signs — her husband, Doug, is running for Los Angeles Regional Vice Chairman — but he is unopposed)… This election takes place before dinner on the Friday of convention. So it will be over very quickly.
I have met with both candidates, and think that they both bring talents to the position. I’ve not endorsed one over the other, as I am focusing on my own race for Vice Chairman, South.
I hope you enjoy reading what they have to say.
Jon
P.S. Don’t miss the "Golden Pen" column today by Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines. In this short piece written exclusively for the FlashReport, Villines praises Governor Schwarzenegger for signing an executive order to bring accountability into the process of tracking how recently authorized infrastructure bond moneys are spent…
Care to read comments, or make your own about today’s Daily Commentary?
Just click here to go to the FR Weblog, where this Commentary has its own blog post, and where you can read and make comments.