RPA's Insider Cabal

Holding onto GOP power in "all-Red" Arkansas

An evolution revolution is happening within the Republican Party of Arkansas ("RPA") that led to the lawsuit by State Convention delegates, who are taking the RPA and Secretary of State John Thurston to federal court over their refusal to implement closed primaries as approved by the Convention back on June 8.

Freedom-loving Republicans all over the country are watching what’s happening here in Arkansas; perhaps they are feeling jealous of our "all-Red" Republican state government. As some have noted, having no Democrat opposition to speak of within the state actually allows the long-term establishment Republicans more time to work on consistently block-voting and opposing grassroots Republican Party members.

If you doubt the establishment Republicans moving against the Party’s grassroots voter base, look no further than that July 25 Executive Committee meeting (called against the Rules without proper notice) where RPA Chair Joseph Wood shut down numerous timely “points of order” while forbidding any discussion whatsoever about the ill-advised motion and bogus “advisory opinion” to nullify the State Convention.

Connections Tell the Tale

Who sits on RPA's Executive Committee? It's state officers (Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer) and the State Committeeman and State Committeewoman. It's also the RPA General Counsel plus the Chairs of the Finance and Rules Committees, and the President/Chairs of various Republican affiliate organizations (e.g., Republican Women, Young Republicans, Hispanic Assembly, Black Republicans) plus the Republican leaders of the state House and Senate, and the Chairman of the state County Chairs organization ("Chair of the Chairs").

We see an incestuous, interwoven web of insiders, most of which are tied into power positions within the Party and state government under our Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Because no proxies are allowed at Executive Committee meetings, 23 of these individuals decided together in an 18-to-5 vote at that July 25 meeting to nullify the actions of over 600 Republican delegates who attended the 2024 State Convention to represent County Committee members statewide.

You can clearly see the top-down, money/power glue running through the RPA Executive Committee that connects the 18 members** who tried to shut down the State Convention documented below.

Will the grassroots voters allow the RPA to continue to dictate "my way or the highway"? Will we allow the RPA to continue using the conservative base to knock on the doors, carry the signs, raise the money, make the phone calls, and do the work to get Republicans elected while ignoring the Rules and the platform values the people say are important?

It's time the Party recognizes the evolution revolution and enables and encourages the "big tent" it brags about that provides all members equal standing!

** While the July 25 Executive Committee vote happened in executive session, we are told the below 18 individuals voted against the 2024 State Convention. (Thanks to our anonymous subscriber who provided much of the information below.)