Posted on 04/17/2002 10:13:14 AM PDT by Dan from Michigan
Precinct Delegate Basics
What is a Precinct?
A precinct is the smallest political geographic division in a state. The area varies on size and is determined by population. A precinct contains a maximum of 2,999 registered voters, although many precincts are smaller. It is up to the local municipalities to draw their own precinct lines.
What is a Precinct Delegate?
A Precinct Delegate is an elected representative to the local political party from the precinct. Every precinct has at least one Republican Delegate, and some have more. The local party determines the number of delegates based on the number of Republican votes in the previous election.
How do you become a Precinct Delegate?
A person running for Precinct Delegate must be a registered voter residing in the precinct in which they are running. The Candidate needs to fill out an "Affidavit of Identity." Affidivits are available at County Clerks’ offices as well as City and Township offices. It is also available online by clicking here. These affidavits need to be notarized by a Notary Public. Notary Publics can be found at the County Clerks office or at a local bank. Once the affidavit is completed it is turned into the County, City or Township Clerk where you live. The affidavit must be submitted no later then 4:00 p.m. on May 14, 2002.
Once the candidate files, their name is placed on the ballot in the August primary. Their name is under the heading “Candidate for County Convention Delegate.” The primary ballots are separated by political party, so only Republican voters vote for the Republican candidate. In the case that the race is contested the person with the most votes wins.
If someone misses the filing deadline they are still able to run if they fill out an Affidavit of Identity and a Declaration of Intent form. These forms must be submitted to the County Clerk by 4:00p.m. on August 2, 2002. They are elected if more than 3 people write in their name.
When are Precinct Delegates elected and how long is the term?
Precinct Delegates are elected in the August primary election of even numbered years. In 2002 this election will take place on August 6th. The term is a two year term, so delegates elected in August 2002 will serve until the August primary of 2004.
What are the duties of a Precinct Delegate?
The official role of a Precinct Delegate is to attend all County Conventions during the two-year term. The number of County Conventions varies from three to four depending on if it is a Presidential or Gubernatorial cycle. In addition Precinct Delegates are involved in helping local parties and candidates in a variety of activities.
What if I need to withdraw?
Sometimes circumstances occur in which a candidate needs to withdraw their candidacy. A Precinct Delegate can withdraw until three days after the filing deadline, which is May 17, 2002 at 4:00 p.m.
How do I know if I am elected?
On the day after the election you can call your County Clerks office to find out if you were elected. The Clerk will also notify successful Precinct Delegates by mail.
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County Conventions
What is a County Convention?
A County Convention is a meeting of the Precinct Delegates and Elected Officials in a County. At these meetings the participants elect individuals to be delegates and alternates to the State Convention or they elect people to serve on the County Party Executive Committee.
When do County Conventions take place?
The first County Convention will be held in August of 2002. This Convention will take place soon after the August primary when the Precinct Delegates are elected. The next County Convention will be held within 30 days of the November 5, 2002 General election. The third and final County Convention will take place in January 2003. In Presidential election years there is an additional County Convention which takes place in April.
What specifically occurs at each of these Conventions?
August - At the August County Convention the newly elected Precinct Delegates meet together to elect delegates and alternates to the State Convention. In 2002 the State Convention will be held August 23rd and 24th. At this State Convention the delegates will elect candidates for the following statewide offices:
Lieutenant Governor
Secretary of State
Attorney General
Michigan Supreme Court (2)
Michigan State University Board of Trustees (2)
University of Michigan Board of Regents (2)
Wayne State University Board of Governors (2)
State Board of Education (2)
At this State Convention in Presidential election years all of these statewide offices are elected except for Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, and Attorney General. These positions are four- year terms and only elected in the gubernatorial election year.
November - At the November County Convention Precinct Delegates elect the members of the County Executive Committee. The members of the Executive Committee serve a two year term.
January - At the January County Convention Precinct Delegates elect delegates and alternates to the State Convention. The State Convention is in late January or early February and is held to elect the Republican State Party leadership. The leadership elected at this convention are the following:
State Chairman
Six Vice-Chairmen
State Committee Members
District Executive Committee Members
District Officers
During Presidential election years there is an additional County Convention in April.
April - During this County Covention the Precinct Delegates again elect people to be delegates and alternates to the State Convention in May. At the May state convention the delegates elect people to be delegates to the Republican National Convention and elect the Republican National Committeeman and Committeewomen from Michigan.
How do I know when and where the Conventions take place?
About thirty days before the County Convention, Precinct Delegates should receive an official call to Convention. The official call will be sent out by the Republican County Chair and will give all of the details of the County Convention. If you are elected a Delegate or an Alternate to a State Convention you will receive information from the Michigan Republican State Committee.
DATES to remember
May 14, 2002 - Filing Deadline for Precinct Delegates
August 6, 2002 - Primary Elections
August 14, 2002 - County Convention
August 23-24, 2002 - State Convention
November 5, 2002 - General Election
And if you are not a member of your party, please join at least on the COUNTY level. That's where most of the action is at.
And we need help in Michigan. Dick Posthumus has a tough race, and that means we need to work harder to help him win. He CAN win too. John Engler won in 1990.
It will take hard work, and we all have to do our part. I'll do what I can out where I'm at, and I will work to get the gunowners out to the polls too.
I THINK the delegates affect the platform policies as well.
We can sit back, let the RINOS or John Schwarzes take control of the party, or we make a difference. I've made my decision. This is a critical election, and I'll be damned if I don't go down without fight.
In Michigan the delegates write the platform and choose the Secretary of State candidate.
From my experience with grassroots volunteer work, ost "conservatives" don't bother showing up to do the heavy lifting until AFTER the campaign season has gotten well underway--and, having left the RINOs to do the inter-election work (unpaid at that), they then try to hip-check the RINOs out of the way and do the high-profile stuff. This breeds a ton of resentment in the RINOs, who then wish the conservatives, if they ain't going to work the entire time, would just shut up and vote on Election Day.
Folks, it's called "sweat equity" for a reason. We need to put in a large chunk if we're going to expect a prime seat at the big table.
I coach high school freshman. The season starts in January and ends in October or November. Lifting, conditioning, discipline all atarts then.
If gun OWNERS were as active as the GUN RIGHTS activists, we would never have come near the mess that we are in now.
Gun OWNERS voted 60% for Bush. That's inexcusable that 38% or so of Gunowners voted for GORE. Gun Rights activists voted 79% for Bush.
There is no reason that the gunowners number should not be at least 75%.
I got on the district platform committee and made sure we had strong pro-gun planks.
On to the state convention, where delegate seats have gone begging!
That inspired me to write the follwing:
After many years of corruption by elected officials in every branch and level of government the people began to pray to God for Him to change the hearts and minds of the elected leaders.
Many years and countless elections later nothing had changed. The government was even more corrupt. The same officials were being elected over and over and it seemed as though God had not answered or even heard their prayers. There was despair throughout the land.
A group of people thought they would pray once more to God and ask Him why he had not answered their prayers. As they prayed the clouds parted in the sky and a voice was heard throughout the land. It was indeed the Almighty Himself. He explained that He was doing all he could, but he needed the help of the people. “Meet me half way” He implored. “Get involved! Attend your caucuses! I can’t do it without your help”.
The voice went silent, the clouds reappeared and everything returned to normal. The people heard that they needed to get involved to make the changes they wanted. It was now up to them.
May 11, 2004 is the filing deadline.
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