METHOD TO THE MADNESS

It has come to the attention of GE&P that a larger than usual number of the folks are interested in the Precinct Reorganization process now being conducted by the BCGOP. Whether it is because of the developments on the National scene or the questionable decisions being made by politicians on the local level, the folks have decided they want to get involved in local politics on a more personal note. GE&P has received numerous questions and complaints about the process so far. In this post, we hope to answer at least some of these inquiries.

SC Code of Law provides very clear guidelines for the process of reorganization of political parties. SCGOP Rules provide additional guidelines for the Republican Party. ( For those who would like to read the entire texts, the information can be found under Title 7- Elections, Chapter 9, Party organization, in the SC Code of Law and in Rule 5 of the SCGOP Rules.) For our purposes, we will concentrate on the SCGOP process in Berkeley County.

THE PRECINCT PACKET:
SCGOP Party Headquarters prepares a packet of information for each precinct in the county. Contained in this packet are all the legal forms necessary for reorganization, along with complete instruction on conducting the meeting, and a list of all the Republican voters in that precinct. It is very helpful to receive this packet in a timely manner so the organizer can contact as many people as possible who wish to participate. This year, the precinct packets were picked up in Columbia by the BCGOP leadership on February 7, 2009. Ten days later, on February 16, 2009, an executive committee meeting was held at Eagle Landing to distribute the packets. Only members of the executive committe were notified of this meeting.

NOTIFICATION:
At this point, GE&P thinks it might be helpful for all to know the legal requirements for notification of reorganization.

Section 7-9-50 SC Code of Law
"A notice must be published by the county committee once a week for two consecutive weeks not more than three weeks nor less than two weeks before the meeting date in a newspaper having general circulation in the county."

This cycle, the first notice appeared in the P&C on February 19, 2009, two weeks before the actual reorganization meeting and three days after the meeting to distribute the packets. The second notice appeared on February 26, 2009, one week before the actual meeting on March 5, 2009. It should be apparent to all how this schedule could be problematic for those, other than members of the executive committee, who wished to participate.

It is important for the reader to understand that "reorganization " is not a one event deal. It is a process that contains several steps. It is imperative for the public to be aware of the times and places of each step. As everyone knows, this has not been the case during this year's process.

Originally, the packets should have been distributed in a timely manner. They were not.

There should have been public notice as to time and place for folks to pick up their packets. There was not.

The notifications should have been published in accordance with the Law. They were not.

There should have been instructions contained within the notifications as to where and when to return the packets. ( GE&P will expand upon this issue later in this post.) There were not.

In the notifications, there should have been a time, date, and place for the reorganization make-up meeting. There was not. The word on the street is that the chairman has said the make-up meeting will be held on March 19th at Eagle Landing but, to date, no one has received an official notice. At best, only members of the executive committee will be notified as the chairman said he "had sent out letters". Does he have your address?

As of this writing, no one knows where the county convention will be held.

Now, we shall provide some additional information on the process of returning the packets to the chairman and some possibilities for your consideration as to why the process is as it is.

According to SCGOP Rules, ( rule 4 (c) (5) ) information contained in the packets must be returned to the chairman no later than five days after the original meeting. This rule has been thrown out the window. In the instructions this cycle and last, the packets had to be returned within 24 hours of the original meeting. Now, use your common sense. If you are the leadership and you want to maintain that position, you want to be certain you have a sufficient number of delegates at the county convention to assure your re-election. The only way to be sure this will be the outcome is to know, for certain, exactly how many delegates your opposition has. This is not rocket science. If the process was fair, the make-up meeting would be held on that fifth day after the original precinct meeting. But, who's talking about fair. We're talking about maintaining power.

If this situation was not so serious, it would be quite amusing. But, the behaviour and goals of the existing leadership is so transparent that it borders on the ridiculous. What better ways to assure that no new people, or your opposition, will participate in the process; don't tell anyone, except your supporters, when the meetings will be held; don't give any precinct packets to new people; wait until the last possible moment to announce meetings; hold meetings in inappropriate venues. In other words, make every step in the process as difficult, inconvenient, and secretive as possible.

GE&P always likes to end on a positive note. Therefore, take heart Berkeley County Republicans. Come to the make-up meeting and let your voices be heard. Come and be part of the effort to clean up this mess. Come to Eagle Landing on March 19, 2009. No time has been given for the meeting but you can bet GE&P will announce this as soon as the information becomes available.