The SCGOP Guide to (Ramming Through) a Convention
On Saturday, June 27, delegates of the South Carolina Republican Party met for a special-called convention. After more than two decades of a state legislature ignoring the will of South Carolina Republicans, the State Republican Party was preparing a legal case to compel lawmakers to close Republican primaries to registered party members only.
To those new to the convention process, one might assume the proceedings would be fair, orderly, and trustworthy. Think again.
Republicans and conservatives overwhelmingly support closed primaries. Many, however, do not support manipulating the process and breaking their own rules to achieve that goal.
The SCGOP’s House of Cards
It was supposed to be a convention about closing Republican primaries.
Instead, what many delegates walked away talking about wasn’t the rule itself.
It was the process.
The more delegates I’ve spoken to over the past 72 hours, the more a pattern begins to emerge. Individually, each incident might be dismissed as a misunderstanding. Together, however, they paint a picture that deserves far more scrutiny than it has received.
SCGOP Call to Convention: Bread and Circuses
Saturday's special convention of the South Carolina Republican Party was called under the banner of closing our Republican primaries and providing a legal reason to compel the state legislature to do so.
The day’s deliberations were to be followed by a “Unity BBQ,” a perhaps intentional carrot to be dangled to keep the proceedings as uninterrupted as possible.
After watching the proceedings unfold, it became increasingly clear that the true priority was not simply closing the primaries - it was consolidating control over who is permitted to run as a Republican.
LCRP Meeting Recap: Process, Proxies and the 2-of-3 Debate
Last night’s Lexington County Republican Party Executive Committee meeting was enlightening to say the least.
After special guest speaker Hamp Redmond, Chairman Mark Weber opened the business portion of the meeting with an officer’s report emphasizing his commitment to keeping meetings short, ending on time, and becoming more disciplined with process and Robert’s Rules of Order.
Efficiency. Order. Structure.
Ironically, the moment he concluded, Second Vice Chair Debbie Heim’s “report” proceeded as a nearly 30-minute lecture on how a bill becomes law.
To be fair, this concept was already masterfully covered in about three minutes by Schoolhouse Rock!, specifically the cinematic masterpiece, I’m Just a Bill.
After multiple additional leadership reports, we finally arrived at the 3 resolutions on the agenda, right at the 8pm deadline. The chair then asked the body whether we wished to extend the meeting to actually conduct the party’s business.
To my knowledge, business meetings exist for the Executive Committee to conduct business, not to sit politely while leadership enjoys the dulcet tones of its own officer reports.
Closed Primaries vs. Candidate Control: Know the Difference
The agenda for the Lexington County Republican Party monthly meeting was issued today. Among several resolutions at the upcoming meeting on Monday, the executive committee will consider:
* A resolution supporting the “clean” closed primary bill (H.5183), a fantastic piece written and submitted by Preston Baines.
* A separate resolution imposing candidate qualification standards requiring a candidate to have voted in two of the last three Republican primaries.
It’s important to note the differences between the two.
One is about who votes in our primaries.
The other is about who is allowed to run.
That distinction matters.
Citizens, Activists left in the Dark during Kershaw County GOP Leadership's Discipline of Conservatives
It was another cold evening at the American Legion in Camden as the Kershaw County Republican Party held their monthly business meeting on Thursday, February 5. The meeting contained items that were the latest in a saga that pitted the SCGOP-aligned leadership (which holds a slim majority of the body and its leaders) against the conservative faction, or "KCGOP Freedom Caucus."
Closed Primaries, Closed Doors: What Republican Voters Were Not Told
The debate over South Carolina’s closed primary legislation (House Bills 3310 and 3643) has been framed by party leadership as a failure of conservative unity.
A closer look at what transpired inside party meetings suggests a different story: one of selective discussion, incomplete disclosure, and top-down control.
An Open Letter to the SCGOP
We submit this formal protest regarding the State Party’s voter suppression tactics against Pickens County. Many of the known venues and times for the upcoming reorganization are materially inadequate and difficult for the potential delegate and alternate allotments of the precincts assigned to each site. These multiple venues and schedules have resulted in confusion, exclusion of eligible participants, and unequal access among precincts — burdens that confirm the harm and undermine confidence in party procedures.
Rules? Who cares. Rules are optional with Lexington GOP leadership.
I have no pithy headline. This may fall on deaf ears for many in Lexington County.
I have included the new “guidelines” passed by Lexington GOP Chairman Mark Weber and the leadership team in August. I would argue that adding these on to the county GOP rules package actually breaks the party rules that forbid rule changes outside of county convention. But I digress.
LCRP October Meeting
I didn’t attend last night’s Lexington County Republican Partymeeting, but I was sent the audio from a member.
Email to Chairman Weber
By Sarah Grace Allen
𝐀𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬, 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐈’𝐦 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐂𝐑𝐏 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞.
As you may know, Chairman Mark Weber represented Lexington county at the SCGOP Executive Committee meeting regarding Pickens.
The spirit and wording of his report indicated he was acting as a friend to Pickens by proposing an amendment to allow Pickens County to resume as a party without redoing their ReOrg.
However, a report I received yesterday indicated that he proposed the amendment, only to 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐝 it later. Mark made no such mention of rescinding anything, so I have written him requesting clarification.
Patriot Victory in Pennsylvania
Patriots across the nation are witnessing a blow to the Republican establishment chokehold, as just last week a Pennsylvania court issued a decisive ruling in FAVOR of grassroots conservatives against their county GOP.
LCRP September Meeting
For those of you who have been following my posts, I want to give a quick recap of what was shared at last night’s LCRP monthly meeting regarding the Pickens situation.
As you know, I previously reached out to our chairman, Mark Weber, with questions and concerns, but he never responded. Instead, this was the first time we heard his explanation in the form of his officer report.
Transparency Should Never Be Optional
A week later, and Chairman Mark Weber has yet to respond to any of my emailed questions and concerns regarding Pickens.
The suspension process has, to my knowledge, been egregiously mishandled according to our GOP rules. My attempts at seeking understanding and clarity have been met either with personal commentary, or complete silence.
Letter of Support for Pickens
It’s a meaty read but worth the simplified explanation of the Pickens issue as it relates to our party rules.
Also, as an update I still have not received any response from Chairman Mark Weber regarding my questions and concerns about this matter.
New Developements
New developments. This screenshot I received raised concerns, and while I don’t pretend to know how everything works at the state level, I’m continuing to ask questions and share the correspondence along the way.
Response to the 1st Vice Chair
As a follow-up from my last post, First Vice Chairwoman Debbie Heim has responded to my email that was addressed to Chairman Mark Weber.
Pictured below is her email, and below this body of text is my response. I encourage everyone following the Pickens issue to read both thoroughly.
Like Debbie says - “Rules matter. Leadership matters.”
This isn’t just a Pickens County issue. Charleston, Darlington, Georgetown, Lexington and many others were affected by this corrupt convention and reorg process. And these are only for THIS year.
We MUST demand accountability in these dealings. If we shrug our shoulders or turn a blind eye, all we do is further engorge the Swamp we swore to drain.
Letter to Leadership Re: Pickens
I just sent the following email to Mark Weber and the entire leadership team of the Lexington County Republican Party regarding the issue of Pickens County.
The next State Executive Committee meeting is right around the corner, so I encourage everyone concerned about this issue to contact their county leadership regarding this vote.
Trip to the RNC falls on no ears
This past May, I filed a complaint against Drew McKissick with the RNC Council because of the sickening level of corruption in the SCGOP. But they have ignored my request for a hearing.
Justice for Pickens
Last night at the Lexington County Republican Party monthly business meeting, First Vice Chairwoman Debbie Heim gave her officer report.
The entirety of her report was about Pickens County. Not only did Debbie confirm that she was the proxy for Chip Browne as State EC, she also confirmed that she did in fact vote in FAVOR of suspending the Pickens County Republican Party.