by Deborah Birch
The race to take back the White House in 2016 is in full swing, and the drama has already begun in Virginia due to the outrageous infighting within the Republican Party of Virginia on whether we should choose our 2016 Republican nominee by Primary vote or by Delegate vote at a convention.
I want to express my support to the members of the State Central Committee and Republican across Virginia for a 2016 presidential PRIMARY over a presidential nominating convention.
A Republican Primary is the logical and practical choice for many reasons. Conventions are far from inclusive and do not come close to accurately representing the beliefs of the entire Republican constituency. The Republican Party is working to continue to GROW the party, not just pandering to the establishment and alienating other voter demographics. One of these key voter demographics that has felt alienated by the GOP are millennials.
The GOP made strides in the 2014 midterms elections to increase the millennial vote, but we are still far behind. As a current student and a millennial, I have a very busy and demanding schedule between attending classes and my leadership positions within the College Republicans. It is very difficult to find spare time in my schedule, let alone find the time (and money) to go to a convention. I am not unique in that respect.
A primary would allow me to be able to express who I believe should be the Republican nominee to face the Democratic nominee in the race for the White House. Not only that, those voters who are hard working Virginians that work long hours as well as members of our military deployed overseas are not able to attend a convention. How is this fair? We live in a free society with the freedom of speech. One of the biggest ways to demonstrate that freedom of speech is to vote. Why should we deny that freedom to the next generation of leaders, hard working Virginians, or to the brave men and women who are currently risking their lives to protect that very freedom?
Furthermore, there is a legal and financial disadvantage and fear to holding a convention due to the proposed mandatory filing fee. Considering the current financial situation that the RPV is facing, putting on a major convention that could cost over $300,000 is incredibly fiscally irresponsible. Not only that, even if we charged the Presidential candidates $25,000 (which we may not be able to do), we still would not raise enough money to justify the cost of the convention unless there were 12 candidates that make it through to mid-March, which history shows will probably not happen. The decisions by the SCC last year to require delegates at a convention to pay to attend is the equivalent of a poll tax. As my good friend and John Scott eloquently drove home recently, “[l]ast year, SCC voted to allow PRV to require convention delegates to pay a mandatory filing fee to vote . . . The Supreme Court ruled in Morse v. Republican Party of Virginia that mandatory convention filing fees are subject to DOJ pre clearance (pre-approval) under the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Additionally, voters are given a legal right to challenge the fees as a poll tax. Simply put, the RPV is highly susceptible to lawsuits and will have to expend precious resources to defend itself.”
This could result in a terrible backlash and PR nightmare for the RPV and there also is not a single Presidential candidate that has stated (on record) that they support mandatory filing fees in Virginia or anywhere else for a nominating convention.
As a CR, I strongly urge all of the members of State Central Committee to take these points into consideration when making their decision on Saturday. The Republican Party has been making strides to become a more inclusive party and we must continue to do so. One way to continue this commitment to inclusivity is to continue to use a Republican presidential primary over a convention.
Deborah Birch is the Digital Communications Director of the College Republican Federation of Virginia and current Chairwoman of the Hollins University College Republicans.
