AZ High-Profile Delegate Candidates Lose to ‘Grassroots Conservatives’ in Dist. 11 Repub. Caucus

AZ Conservative ^ | By Dennis Durband, Editor

[hsmomx3]

Delegate positions for the upcoming May 8th Arizona Republican convention are hard to come by in Legislative District 11. Precinct Committeemen (PCs) in that district voted against Arizona Republican chairman Bob Fannin, former Secretary of State Betsey Bayless, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne, State Rep. Deb Gullett, District 11 chairman Tom Haney, Arizona Corporation Commissioner Marc Spitzer and WISH List supporter and former executive director of Arizona GOP Ann Lynch. A group described as “grassroots conservatives” claimed the 48 delegate positions available to District 11, which comprises parts of Phoenix and Paradise Valley.

Before the week was over, however, PCs in Legislative District 17 (Tempe and south Scottsdale) selected Fannin as an at-large delegate from their district.

Rob Haney, the conservative D11 PC who put together the slate of conservatives who claimed many of those delegate positions, cried foul over the action by D17 to select Fannin as a delegate.

Haney claims that party bylaws require delegates to live in the district which selected them and said that Fannin lives in D11. He described the D17 move as a “shenanigan designed to reverse the legitimate election results of PCs in District 11. They found a loophole in the bylaws for a delegate to be elected who doesn’t live within the district and railroaded it through. Only an ACLU lawyer could find such a loophole.”

Two slates of candidates were submitted in D11. However, PCs ended up voting for 48 delegates off a list of 99 total candidates. The high-profile candidates listed above were among the 51 candidates who did not win election.

“Our efforts in District 11 were intended to show that people supporting the party platform and hard-working members should have a place at the table,” Haney said of the D11 caucus results. He characterized the delegates as "grassroots conservatives."

According to Haney, Article 6 of the party bylaws state that for counties of 500,000 or more residents, state delegates must originate from their home district. Laura Knaperek, a former legislator running for the House again this year out of D17, disputed Haney’s interpretation of the by-laws.

“All you have to be is a voter who’s a registered Republican who lives in the county,” Knaperek said. “I don’t understand why his (Fannin’s) own district wouldn’t even elect him. How embarrassing. It doesn’t make sense to me. You have to respect your leader, especially in an election year.”

The purpose of delegates is to attend the May 8th state Republican convention in Phoenix, where they will cast their votes in the selection of a Republican National Committeeman and committeewoman to represent Arizona on the Republican National Committee.

Mike Hellon, a pro-abortion liberal, is running for re-election to the GOP's national committee against conservative challenger Randy Pullen, of Phoenix. Incumbent Berniece Roberts is not running for re-election as the state's committeewoman.

Fannin's popularity has been on the decline in recent months and he has lost favor with many conservatives. In January, he angered conservative party leaders by cajoling them to support President Bush’s proposed Temporary Worker program – right after the Protect Arizona Now initiative opposed by party leadership won a 317-108 endorsement. Fannin has also supported the pro-abortion WISH List, and failed to generate sufficient party funding in 2003 for Phoenix mayoral candidate Randy Pullen. Party defections on Fannin's watch also resulted in the election of Democrat Janet Napolitano as governor in 2002. There has been a parade of AZ GOP executive directors coming and going since Fannin became chairman in 2002.

Haney said there is growing resentment for Fannin among D11 PCs. “Bob Fannin is a liberal who ignores the will of the people,” Haney said.

District 17 elected Fannin and 28 other delegates by acclimation, Knaperek said.