LCRC Member Calls For Break-Up Of Local GOP

State Republican leaders are reviewing a complaint a member of the Loudoun County Republican Committee filed seeking "dissolution" of the local party organization.

The letter, sent Wednesday by Jeffrey A. Wolinski to 10th District Republican Chairman Jim Rich, Virginia Republican Party Chairman Ed Gillespie and the state RPV Executive Director Charlie Judd, states that the Loudoun County Republican leadership "has practiced a closed and insular form of governance that is not in keeping with the inclusive outreach we need to remain a viable political party."

"I fear for our Grand Old Party here in Loudoun County," Wolinski states in his letter.

Aside from Wolinski's claim that the party has become insular, he makes two specific charges. Wolinski states the LCRC has not held an official meeting since November, and that, he states, puts the local party in violation of its own party plan, which requires meetings every three months.

LCRC Chairman Paul Protic has previously said the party plans to meet at the end of March, satisfying the party plan because the committee will have met in the first quarter of the year and the final quarter of 2006. Wolinski and Protic's reading of the party plan differs.

Wolinski's second objection involves the published Convention Call, which he states was "marred by the exclusion of certain RPV-required language that the LCRC leadership found to be offensive." The call is the public notice and rules for the party's local nominating convention planned for June.

Reached Friday for comment, Protic said Wolinski's letter came "out of the blue."

"Jeff is a nice fellow, but I think he has his facts wrong," Protic said. "We got an OK from [the state Republican Party] to not have a February meeting and to meet in March. On the call, we believe we were cleared by it."

He said the call is being reviewed to make sure it was presented correctly.

Wolinski's technical complaints aside, the LCRC member goes on to criticize the leadership of the committee for a number of decisions. The letter to Rich and others questions the decision to hold the LCRC convention at a large evangelical church in Ashburn. Previous conventions have been held at public high schools in Leesburg.

"I believe that the LCRC leadership's unspoken purpose in choosing this venue was to restrict participation in the Convention to practicing Christians only," the letter states. "I would submit that this action by the LCRC is not in keeping with inclusionary "open to all' participation admonition set forth" in the state party plan.

Wolinski notes that LCRC member and Logistics Chairman Clint Good "spoke up and advised that he had secured the same location in a public high school where the LCRC held its successful 2003 convention, but the LCRC leadership was set on holding the Convention in a Christian Church for rather obvious reasons and chose to ignore Mr. Good's suggestion."

In the months since the committee's last official meeting in November, party leaders have written and published the conventional call, opened and closed the call for nominations for the county's 13 local government offices, and opened and closed the period for voters to file to be convention delegates.

The LCRC is "fractured and dysfunctional," Wolinski writes and is "run by a small cadre intent on exercising the utmost control and limiting participation by the general membership." If, what Wolinski called "the draconian" measure of disbanding the committee and starting anew is not granted, then he requests that "at a minimum, I would ask that the LCRC be sanctioned for its premeditated decision to suspend the holding of regular meetings and that the as-advertised Convention Call ... be ruled invalid."

Rich, the longtime chairman of the 10th District Congressional Committee, said, "we'll look into it and also the state party will look into it."

"Above all we want a process that is fair and welcoming," he said, "so people feel they can be a part of the party. We'll have to ensure that's done and all the rules are complied with."

To the charge that the LCRC is exclusionary, Protic had a response.

"I would say we've signed up more than 1,900 delegates to our convention from every walk of life, faith and profession," he said. "We have new activists and new registered voters. We're proving to be a welcoming party. So I don't think that holds water."

Protic also cautioned that Loudoun Republicans are in the middle of campaign season, with a handful of contested primaries.

"Primaries can be heated," Protic said. "Republicans are as passionate as any Democrat. We're going to get people on either side or different sides doing what they think they need to do to get their nominee nominated. There's a lot of politics going on."

Asked if he thought Wolinski's letter was motivated by politics, Protic said, "He's not a casual bystander."

To that, Wolinski said, "This is not about mine or anybody else's political aspirations, this is about doing what is right."

John Andrews, a candidate for the GOP's nomination in the 33rd Senate District, said the perception of the LCRC has been a concern for him.

"I will say for the record that there is a perception of the local committee not being a big tent," he said. "And it has been a concern of mine. The local Republicans need to reach out throughout the community to get support for their candidates. When you intentionally or unintentionally leave an impression of not being a big tent it effects the Republican candidates. I think there is a lot of good Republicans out there that will not become members of the committee, rightly or wrongly, because of the perception of the Republican committee."

As for the suggested dissolution of the LCRC, Rich said, "I hope it doesn't come to that."

Del. Joe T. May (R-33) said he doesn't see the need for dissolution.

"I can tell you ... I'm not ready to give up on the local party," May said. "Have there been some issues where I disagree? Doggone right."

May quibbles with what he called the politics of how the committee's meetings are handled. He said there have been times where there is a "considerable lack of courtesy" to individuals who want to "speak their piece."

Loudoun County Treasurer Roger Zurn (R), who has been active in local politics for two decades, said the "$100,000 question" is whether to break up the LCRC and start anew.

"There is pros and cons even within my own self," Zurn said. "I'd like to see the 10th District Committee, as well as the RPV, take a look at what has been transpiring and perhaps call a special meeting of all the committees and let's just air it all out and what happens, happens. I think it's time for an outside party to take a look at everything and to make a decision, if status quo remains or do we go in a different direction."

Zurn said there has been much "bantering" about the exclusive nature of the LCRC, and pointed to a handful of incidents during which certain Republicans didn't meet the LCRC smell test.

"Obviously, there has been a couple of actions in the past whereby some members have not, or were not allowed to join the committee, particularly, the former chairman of the Republican committee, a gentleman by the name of Win Porter," Zurn said. "And I think the process that was chosen in terms of a convention, over say a firehouse primary, was a cause of concern."

Zurn said that for the "first time of my tenure in 20 years of Loudoun County politics," candidates and current office holders were not involved in putting together the call for the convention.

"The direct answer is yes, I am very concerned about some actions that have been taken that would tend to exclude at a very time when we need to be inclusive," Zurn said.

Infighting is not new for Loudoun Republicans.

Protic's tenure as LCRC chairman actually began on the same night one year ago that a group of Republicans, led by Dimitri Kesari, Sterling District Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio and former Del. Dick Black opposed the addition of new members to the committee who, they claimed, had previously supported Scott K. York's independent bid for county chairman.

Porter was one of the "famous 11 people" that night in 2006, he said.

"They will say people like Win are not good Republicans because they once supported a non-Republican," said Porter, who has received presidential appointments from both Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.

"I've probably voted Republican 99 percent of the time. But that wasn't good enough. But I think that's just a red herring. I think they want Republicans to think the same way they think, like about unlimited growth for instance. I'm not against development, but I just don't think you throw somebody out of the party because they disagree on one thing."

Porter said he "doesn't have much confidence in the LCRC leadership" and while he's not sure dissolving the party is the answer, he thinks "the central committee needs to look into why in the world is this committee driving out so many good Republicans."

A rift in the GOP can be tracked back further than last year's chairman election or York's 2003 decision to seek reelection as an independent. In 2000, the party's pro-growth wing scuttled Mark Tate's election as chairman, although he was unopposed, after he indicated he would push for the committee to reverse its opposition to the county's Purchase of Development Rights program. But Tate said the rift can be tracked back even further.

"It began in a primary race between Rick Roberts and Dale Myers [for the GOP nomination for county chairman in 1995]," Tate said. "Rick Roberts wanted managed growth. Dale won [the primary] and that's where the rift started. The next election cycle, Dale was running for reelection. Scott [York] ran and challenged her for the nomination as chairman of the board."

York defeated Myers in a primary, a win Myers and others questioned because, they said at the time, non-Republican slow growth advocates came into the nominating process to choose York.

"The rumor is that's when the development industry got really organized, when [York] got nominated as a Republican," Tate said. "Myers ran as an independent. When [York] left the committee and became an independent, a lot of members just wandered away. And now we have the battle today. It's been a long fight."

What will happen because of the current friction is to be determined. But the immediate past chairman of the LCRC, Randy Minchew, offered support for Protic.

"I support the current leadership," Minchew said. "Paul Protic and I are good friends. We get together for breakfast once per month."

Minchew said that during his leadership of the party, inclusiveness was a mission successfully accomplished.

"The 2003 convention, even Democrats acknowledged, we came out strong and united. Our 2003 convention, to me, is some evidence of the power of inclusionary Republican strength. If we hang together, work together, the Republican Party wins. I think that same basic spirit is still here, it just needs to be rekindled. Hopefully the June 9 convention can rekindle it. I think the ingredients are there."

Wolinski, in a telephone conversation Friday, said he has "personally lost faith in the current party leadership." He listed a number of grievances, including the exclusion of the aforementioned 11 Republicans. He said the executive committee of the party often makes decisions without running them by the general membership.

"We have not held a valid general membership meeting since November," Wolinski said. "The general membership has not been able to vote on critical issues critical to the selection of delegates."

Wolinski said there is concern about how the leadership will handle the selection of delegates during the June convention. According to a number of Republicans, many of the contested races are overfiled, meaning some decision will have to be made about how to chose which delegates participate.

"My opinions are purely my own, but I do feel that I speak for a number of disillusioned LCRC members," said Wolinski. "I had somebody tell me, 'You better watch out. You're going to get kicked out of the LCRC.' If I am kicked out of the LCRC, so be it. I will join many other Loudoun Republicans who have been determined to not be pure enough for the LCRC."

Wolinski said he has spoken with local party leadership about his concerns, but felt his comments weren't taken seriously.

Protic said he has spoken with Rich about Wolinski's letter but declined to comment on the details of the conversation. He said he would be "absolutely" surprised if a decision were made to break up the local party.