Former Republican Party of Virginia Chairman Ed Gillespie today said that he opposes current efforts in the General Assembly to take decisions on nomination methods away from the political parties.
In connection with our previous posts on this subject (see Keep the Gov’t Out of GOP Nomination Contests and Will GOP Senate Candidates Fight to Defend Our Party?) last night I spoke with Ed Gillespie, widely considered to be the candidate to beat in the race to take on Mark Warner this fall. Gillespie had not considered the issue before, but promised a prompt response.
Today, Ed called to let me know that he had analyzed what was at stake here, and the particular relevance of this legislation to his current and former roles. He said he supports the party’s prerogative on this issue, before issuing the following written statement
I share the desire to make sure active military can participate in our nominating process, but as a former RPV chair I think we should address that in our party process, not through legislation. As a candidate for the U.S. Senate, I don’t intend to comment on General Assembly bills, but in this instance I believe it’s relevant to share my views as a former state party chair.
This is a solid and well-considered move by Gillespie, and one bound to garner support from among the grassroots activists who will attend this June’s Convention in Roanoke. Well done, Ed!
Gillespie joins fellow candidate Shak Hill in opposing HB194 and SB507, leaving Howie Lind as the only declared Senate candidate who has not publicly opposed this unconstitutional effort to force the choice of nomination decision on the political parties.
