The New Hampshire Republican Party is in the process of adding additional staff members to their operations.
While this is certainly welcome news for those of us looking for signs of life from the Grand ‘Ole Party, the next sentence reveals the rest of the story:
Currently the Republicans have four full-time staffers, compared with the New Hampshire Democrats who have eighteen staffers.
Of course, regular ‘Grok readers have long known that the Democrats were motivated and on the march. In a September post, I warned of our lack of a response to a threat that clearly revealed itself as far back as last April:
Six months ago, Chairman Buckley told Lakes Region Democrats about his plan to manage the grass roots effort he so truly believes in, planning for future Election Day successes:
“We are hiring full time staff with nothing else to do. They’re not going to be involved anywhere else in the state—not going to do anything else. Their full time job is going to be working with the county committees.”
He then reiterated the state party’s commitment:
“There will be one full time person in the county that will be available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for the next year and a half to help organize– to work with you.”
Now, I’m reasonably well-connected to the Republican Party, but, unless I missed it, I know of nobody available to help 24/7. I know that Fergus Cullen is making an effort, but a lack of money in the coffers keeps him from matching the Dems worker for worker. That shouldn’t stop the grass roots from being cultivated, but yet for the Republicans, inexplicably, it has– Especially when we consider those who represent us at the state level. Let’s face it, in order for the “grass roots” to become active and energized, they need something to get excited about. It is hard to build support, recognition and strength when moving into an election cycle if you are continually absent from the scene.
Since the time I wrote that, not much has changed. Certainly when you look at the number of primary participants recently drawing ballots from either the Republican or Democrat side of the ledger, it appears that a presidential campaign season did little to help swell Granite State GOP adherants. The story was the opposite for Democrats. In an article in the January 23rd Laconia Daily Sun, reporter Michael Kitch writes:
The preliminary results of the New Hampshire presidential primary suggest that Democrats have strengthened their presence in Belknap County, which little more than three years ago was a Republican stronghold.
He continues, noting that it is the Democrats benefitting by growing ranks of new or formerly unaffiliated voters:
The Democrats have prospered by appealing to undeclared or independent voters. While the Republican vote in the primary mirrored Republican registrations, the number of Democrat ballots significantly exceeded the number of registered Democrats.
Quoting the chair of the Laconia Democratic Committee, Ron Tunning, Kitch includes in his article something that those of us close to the local scene have long known:
Tunning said the primary mobilized and encouraged Democrats throughout the city and the county, which will enable the party to field a strong slate of candidates and mount an aggressive campaign in the general election in November.
Meanwhile, the chair of that city’s Republican Committee responded with a string of cricket chirps and a firm committment to continue his fight for… oh, that’s right– He didn’t say that because he never says anything that makes its way into the media. In fact, if you lived in Laconia, you wouln’t know that the Republicans existed except for when we hear them defending closed-door meetings.
This is an ongoing problem that drags on. Back in the aforementioned September posting, I wrote, of the motivated NH Democrats:
In addition to the organization and direction provided by full-time, paid party workers, the leaders they have are always front and center making their case. Hardly a day goes by without one of them being reported on in one of the several newspapers, or they write a letter or op-ed piece promoting some issue or cause, their past accomplishments and future plans—all bearing their name. This steady drumbeat builds name recognition and the appearance of always working to get things done.
I’m glad that the NH Republicans are now reaching out and looking to augment the staff at the state party HQ. And there are signs of them becoming more aware and making greater use of the Internet (here in Belknap County, Skip Murphy has been doing yeoman’s work in this area). This is all good stuff. The big question is whether it’s almost too late. It will take a fair amount of time to build momentum and bring ordinary, non political folks that will be next November’s deciding voters into the Republican camp. This YouTube from last April clearly shows the Democrats fired up and ready. I see no similar signs yet on the part of Republicans…
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In addition to new staffers, we need new candidates as well. We can have all the staff on the planet at the party HQ. It won’t make a bit of difference if we don’t seek, in certain circumstances, some alternatives to bring the voters besides the same old dinosaurs. Otherwise, extinction will be inevitable.
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