Elections: They’re Not Over Yet

After so much hard work, the end of the two-year General Election cycle is a relief; the constant TV/radio ads stop and the street corners and vacant lots are wiped clean of all the political signs. This year we also enjoy the excitement of President Trump lining up his cabinet and agency picks who will carry the People’s America First agenda forward throughout the next few years.

Don’t be thinking it’s all over, though.

Republicans Elect Officers Now

Now elections within the Republican Party of Arkansas begin. After each general election cycle, the County, Congressional District, and State Committees elect Party officers and representative positions for two-year terms.

County Committees’ Officers

All Republican County Committees elect new officers at their January meeting. The incoming Chairman, First Vice-Chairman, Second Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, and Election Commissioners (plus such other offices as County Committee local rules specify) serve for two years.

Officers for Arkansas Congressional Districts

Each of the four Congressional District Committees elects its officers at the spring District meetings held between February 15 and March 15 per RPA Rules. The Chairman, First Vice-Chairman, Second Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer serve two-year terms.

Also elected at this time are the District Representative to the State Executive Committee, the District Representative to the Appointee Recommendations Committee, and four (4) Representatives (or Regional Chairmen) to the State Committee, who also serve two years.

Chairman & Officers, Republican Party of Arkansas (RPA)

The State Chairman, a member of the Republican National Committee, is elected for a two-year term by the State Committee at a meeting always held after the November general election and before the end of the year.

The 2024 “Winter” State Committee meeting is on Saturday, December 7. In the past, the RPA has restricted attendance to only Committee members.

Other RPA Officers

The State Committee also elects a first Vice-Chairman, Second Vice-Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer at the December 7 meeting.

Who Votes on the State Committee?

Rules changes approved by the 2024 State Convention would have included more representation of County Committee members themselves in the make-up of the State Committee. However, because the RPA refuses to acknowledge those changes, please remember that after the June 8 Convention RPA Chair Joseph Wood assured all Republican state lawmakers they would continue to be voting members of the State Committee (along with designated Republican party elected positions), completely shutting out County Committees members.

In your County Committee, voting members of the State Committee are your County Chairman, State Committeeman, and State Committeewoman. Voting members of the State Committee also include the four District Representatives from each Congressional District, as well as the four District Chairs and Minority Representatives plus the heads of all nine statewide affiliate organizations (Arkansas Federation of Republican Women, College Republicans, Young Republicans, etc.).

Jennifer Lancaster

Just a homeschool mom hoping to make a positive difference in the world.