The "Other Side" of the State GOP
Republican infighting in Arkansas
Republican party infighting in Arkansas — brought to light by TEA party groups back in 2010 or so — got loud and ugly in 2023. With a stranglehold on party offices and the State Republican Committee, establishment old-timers are blatantly ignoring or deliberately mis-applying (incomplete, confusing) party rules, publicly name-calling fellow Republicans, and even bringing in the local police to intervene in meetings when long-standing members aren’t getting their way.
Four Republican insiders are now telling the “other side” of the story about how the obvious discrimination and ill-will against newer party members is ripping the party apart. They’re revealing how the Republican Party of Arkansas is resisting and disenfranchising huge numbers of new patriot members, after the party has seen phenomenal growth in certain counties because more grassroots conservatives got involved.
Appearing on the Dave Elswick Show (101.1 FM The Answer) a couple weeks ago, 1st District Chair Sarah Dunklin, 2nd District Chair Jennifer Lancaster, 1st District Appointee Committee member Courtney Roldan, and Saline County Committee member Alison Gray recounted several disturbing events that highlight the disruptive “us vs. them” mentality that is a problem inside many Arkansas Republican committees and even Republican-affiliated groups like the Young Republicans and Republican Women.
On Jimmie Cavin’s Facebook Live, they later emphasized their aim to “unify around the principles, the platform, and fair application of the rules,” as they point out that all members of the Republican Party of Arkansas “should be treated equally” according to the party rules.
One of the more painful incidents erupted into public view when the establishment banned the entire Pulaski County delegation from the 2022 State Republican Convention because of a dispute about how new members joined and new officers were elected by that county party (see the complaint at the bottom of this post).
Police were called to escort peaceful Pulaski County Republicans out of the Embassy Suites lobby and building where the meeting was being held that day, but party officials then chose to selectively allow a former lawmaker’s wife (former Pulaski County GOP Chair) to enter the Convention anyway:
In 2023 patriot Republicans worked hard to elect one of their own — two-time District 1 Chair Sarah Dunklin — as the state party chair but instead the old guard elected an Arkansas state agency head who was working for and was endorsed by Governor Sanders and the establishment. (The election was needed after the previous state chair — appointed by Sanders — was said to have demanded, “Get me the hell out of here!” after he took office and saw the ongoing dissension.) The current RPA Chair, Joseph Wood, also flat refuse to publicly address the issues tearing the state party apart.
More recently, eight establishment members in the Saline County Young Republicans took control in the October 2023 membership meeting but then walked out when chaos erupted after they refused to “authorize” 28 other individuals as members (some who wanted to renew and some who were new). Here’s a taste of how that meeting went:
Republican insiders — who are willing to speak up when things are going wrong — have started this conversation that must be heard and resolved. And it’s now very public. The question is, will the Republican Party of Arkansas even acknowledge these inequities? Will grassroots patriots continue to pledge their time and money to a party that will not even discuss their concerns? Will the old guard members continue to control the party from the top down?
2024 is upon us and it’s time those decisions get put behind us. Need we remember that the Republicans currently hold all Arkansas constitutional offices and a super-majority in the State Legislature? We certainly have much work to do!
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Here’s the Complaint that older members used to dismiss the entire 2023-2024 Pulaski County delegation from the Republican Committee:
