Efforts to protect the GOP brand will take center stage when the Idaho Republican State Central Committee holds its winter meeting in Boise in January.
Party officials will consider a variety of rules and resolutions during the two-day session, which begins Jan. 6.
The resolutions are essentially statements of belief. They give elected officials a sense of what local party members are concerned about, but by themselves don’t have a direct impact on voters.
The rules proposals, by contrast, would change the way the state and local party organizations conduct business, including potentially limiting which voters can participate in the GOP primary and prohibiting certain candidates from running as Republicans.
One proposed rule change, for example, seeks to eliminate “cross-over” voting, where Democrats or unaffiliated voters temporarily change their party affiliation in order to vote in the Republican primary.
State law currently allows registered voters to change their party affiliation up to 25 days before an election. The parties themselves, however, decide who is eligible to vote in their primaries.
Branden Durst — a former Democratic state lawmaker who switched parties in 2020 — is proposing a rule change that would prohibit anyone from voting in the Republican primary unless they affiliated with the party at least a year prior to the election.
Affiliating with another political party in the 25 months prior to the election would also disqualify someone from voting in the Republican primary. So would disaffiliating with the GOP, or contributing money to any but Republican candidates and party organizations during that same time period.
Durst’s proposal was approved by delegates to the Idaho GOP state convention in July. Since then, however, at least three county GOP groups have passed resolutions opposing the measure.
The Cassia County Republican Central Committee, for example, said the plan places “an onerous burden” on local elections officials, who would have to determine how long someone has been affiliated with the party before deciding if they could vote the GOP ballot.
Moreover, the committee said, “requiring elections officials to accurately police whether an elector has contributed to any (non-Republican) candidate … is unfeasible.”
Durst served two terms in the Idaho House and one in the Senate, all as a Democrat. He later ran unsuccessfully for office in Washington, again as a Democrat, before moving back to Idaho and switching parties. He subsequently ran for superintendent of public instruction, losing to Debbie Critchfield in this year’s Republican primary.
It’s now up to the state central committee to decide if his proposal will be incorporated into the state party rule book.
The central committee is comprised of the state executive committee, along with the county and legislative district chairs, state committeemen and committee women, and youth committee members.
In addition to Durst’s proposal, the committee will consider another rule change during its January meeting that could restrict which candidates get to call themselves Republicans.
Submitted by Benewah County State Committeeman Hari Heath and Shoshone County Chair Linda Yergler, the change would empower county and legislative district central committees to review the conduct of GOP officials.
The intent, according to the proposal, is to protect “the integrity of the Idaho Republican Party and the confidence of those who vote for Republicans” by ensuring that elected GOP officials adhere to “the expressed policies and principles” of the state party.
This is the latest in a series of “loyalty oath” proposals over the past decade that have tried to prevent officials from straying too far from the party platform.
This rule change would empower local party committees to investigate alleged violations of party principles. If an elected official’s actions were found wanting, they could be censured. Upon second offense, the local committee could bar them from using Republican Party identifiers on campaign information and advertising for a period of five years.
The county central committee would address alleged violations by county officials, while the legislative district central committee handled legislators. The state central committee would deal with members of Idaho’s congressional delegation.
A simple majority vote of committee members present would be needed to censure the official. A 60% vote would be needed to bar them from identifying themselves as Republicans.
A determination to remove party support from an elected official would not remove them from office or change their voter registration party affiliation.
The central committee meeting takes place on Jan. 6 and 7.
Other proposals that will be considered during the meeting include:
A resolution from the Nez Perce County calling for an investigation into the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare’s “dangerous and reckless decision” to promote COVID-19 vaccinations, and to reduce funding for the agency.
A resolution from Idaho GOP Chairwoman Dorothy Moon opposing “ranked choice voting,” which lets voters rank candidates in order of preference, potentially changing the results when no candidate is the top choice for at least 50% of voters.
Moon describes ranked choice voting as “an electoral tool of the Radical Left,” noting that several Democratic states have implemented the scheme in recent years, while conservative states like Texas and Florida have prohibited its use.
Several resolutions express support for Idaho’s abortion laws, while asking the Legislature to provide more support for crisis pregnancy centers and make adoption a more readily available option for Idaho families.
Moon and Blaine Conzatti with the Idaho Family Policy Center also sponsored a resolution opposing gender transition treatment or therapy for minors, including the use of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones or sex reassignment surgery.
The Bonner County Republican Central Committee submitted a resolution encouraging support for constitutional currency, including silver and gold, and opposing the use of digital currency.
A resolution from the Canyon County Republican Central Committee addresses concerns that the federal government could try to address climate change by restricting livestock production or promoting “the consumption of insects, algae and synthetic meat alternatives.”
The resolution encourages Idaho to promote the livestock industry and to oppose any effort to reduce or limit farming and ranching for any reason.
It also says the state should “never place a limit on the meat consumption of Idahoans.”
Spence may be contacted at bspence@lmtribune.com or (208) 791-9168.
