[Update] One of the more clumsy ways to get more detail about a situation is to share what you know or have been told “to get it out there.” That worked. Quite a bit of new information has come my way since this was published, and I will write a follow-up in the coming days.
Things are not as they seem, and much has not been shared. I’ll try to sift through the debris and provide some clarity as soon as possible.
Original Post:
This morning, we received a copy of a letter from the New Hampshire State Republican Party to Raymond, NH Town Committee Chair John O’Blenis III, stating that his town committee had been dissolved.
What I could glean early on, is that this was unexpected, a broadside, and a complete surprise to Republicans in Raymond. I sense there was little or no warning nor any effort to explain or remediate whatever issue led to the decision.
Per the letter, Article I A, if you are curious,
ARTICLE I: The Republican State Committee
The Republican State Committee is organized under RSA 667:21 and :22 and is a New Hampshire voluntary corporation pursuant to the Voluntary Corporations and Associations Act, RSA 292, and shall be referred to herein as the “State Committee.” The State Committee shall comprise the members of all the County and City Committees as selected pursuant to Article V of these bylaws and New Hampshire state law. These bylaws shall be deemed an exercise of the State Committee’s authority under RSA 667:21, II, and shall control to the extent they are inconsistent with RSA 667:21, I, and :22.
A. Purpose:
The State Committee shall have the ultimate responsibility for all of the affairs of the Republican Party in the State of New Hampshire. The State Committee is established primarily for the political purposes herein set forth, subject to the provisions of New Hampshire RSA292 and the provisions of Section527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and for any purpose, for which an organization may be exempt under Section 527 of the Code and, with respect to all of the foregoing purposes, to carry on exempt function purposes within the meaning of Section 527 of the Code.
The principal purpose of the Corporation shall be to influence the selection, nominating election or appointment of individuals to federal, state, or local public office or office in a political organization. The Corporation may directly or indirectly accept contributions or make expenditures for this purpose, but may not impose any type of membership fee or dues upon its members.
That doesn’t tell us more than that the party has this authority and has exercised it. I emailed Chairman Ager to request clarification to which I received this.
In the best interest of the Party. We will reorganize after Nov 5.
I also contacted Raymond GOP Town Committee chair John O’Blenis for an on-the-record comment and had not yet received any response. I will update the details as they become available.
While we wait there is some rumor-mill stuff we can share. One contact who asked to remain anonymous suggested that a cabal of anti-Trump state GOP insiders had tried to take over the Raymond Republican Town committee. This is unconfirmed, so I won’t share the names they suggested might be involved, but you’d recognize them. The goal was to replace existing town committee members, and I was told there were unnecessary primaries for Republican NH House seats.
There is much we do not know at this point except that the NHGOP has dissolved the Raymond Town Committee and seized all its assets.
The featured image is a screen grab from the NHGOPs Page for the Raymond Town Committee. Note: I added the web address to the body of the image – it does not occur there naturally.
