Tennessee GOP State Executive Committee Signs Resolution Opposing Bill to Ban Controversial Caucuses from State Primaries

The Tennessee Republican Party State Executive Committee (SEC) on Saturday passed a resolution in opposition to legislation that would restrict local officials from replacing traditional primary voting for county officials with caucuses, a system that has historically been opposed by Republicans ranging from President Donald Trump to the late Rush Limbaugh.

An image of the resolution posted to the social media platform X states the SEC’s opposition to House Bill (HB) 855 by State Representative Lee Reeves (R-Franklin) and Senate Bill (SB) 799 by Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson (R-Franklin), which would require state parties conduct elections to county offices using the same primary method required in most other state and federal elections.

The resolution claims the legislation ignores the party’s “longstanding tradition” of allowing county officials to determine their own nominating process, that the lack of financial burden to taxpayers brought by the bill means it is “a blatant act of government overreach” aimed at centralizing control, would be in violation of the First Amendment, discriminates against certain counties which will be allowed to continue their current nominating practices through a grandfather clause, and that passing the bill would betray Republicans’ trust in lawmakers  “to uphold party values and grassroots integrity.”

Supporters say the effort will make party nominating contests easy for the grassroots to engage with, especially for active military members, pregnant or new mothers, and those who for whatever reason could not attend in an hours-long caucus event in person.

Appearing on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show earlier this month, Reeves offered several examples of Tennesseans who would be disenfranchised by replacing traditional primary voting with causes.

“The people who get shut out [of caucuses and conventions] are the single moms or the working moms, or police officers and firefighters who have to work during that period of time,” said the lawmaker.

“EMS workers, college students who aren’t there but still want to have a say in their local races, military members that are serving our country who cannot participate, seniors who can’t get there,” are all individuals likely unable to participate in a caucus, Reeves told Michael Patrick Leahy, the Editor-in-Chief of The Star.

He added, “With a convention, there is no early voting, there is no full election day where you can show up, cast your vote, and then get on with the rest of what you have to do that day. It doesn’t exist in a convention.”

Reeves also said the legislation would enshrine election integrity across the Volunteer State, as caucuses are generally administered by political officials who may be biased in favor of a preferred slate of candidates, while traditional primaries are handled by Tennesseans with years of experience managing elections.

“[Primaries] are administered by our local election commissions and they do a great job. They’re trained, they’re unbiased,” said Reeves. “There’s a reason why Tennessee ranks number one in election integrity, and who says that? The conservative Heritage Foundation. They say that we are number one in election integrity and I believe that’s true, and I think those ought to be the folks who are administering an election – not the people that actually have a vested interest in one slate or the other.”

The legislation passed the State Senate last week and will be considered in the State House on Monday.

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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Caucus Night” by James Brooks CC2.0.