Voter Suppression Concerns Mount Ahead of Williamson County Republican Party Reorganization

Voters and candidates have expressed concerns over potential voter suppression tactics ahead of the March 4, 2025 Williamson County Republican Party Reorganization Convention, with reports suggesting such tactics are targeting the Williamson County Conservatives slate of candidates.

The candidates and voters in Williamson County have cited concerns about emails inaccurately informing voters they are not bona fide Republicans that were sent from the Williamson County Republican Party “Contests and Credentialing Committee,” which would make them ineligible to vote on Tuesday, with the Williamson County Conservatives slate noting their opponents appointed the committee.

These typically anonymous emails, compared to The Tennessee Star to the Obama Administration’s controversial DEI “Dear Colleague” letters, were sent from an account named “2025 Credentials” with the subject line “Williamson County Mass Convention.”

The messages claimed the recipient does not meet the Tennessee Republican Party’s Rule E requirement that participants “must be registered to vote and live in Williamson County and have voted in at least 3 of the last 4 most recent Statewide Republican Primaries.”

One such Republican whose bona fide status was wrongly rejected was Robert M. Brown of Brentwood, who received this unsigned email:

Dear fellow Republican,

Thank you for pre registering to participate in the Williamson County Republican Party Mass Convention. Rule E of the Tennessee Republican Party requires that participants must be registered to vote and live in Williamson County and have voted in at least 3 of the last 4 most recent Statewide Republican Primaries.

Unfortunately, your voting record indicates that you do not qualify to participate. If you feel this is an error, please provide voter documentation from another county or state that shows you do qualify to [email protected] as soon as possible.

Also, the name and address you provided are shown as “Robert Brown” at ADDRESS REDACTED FOR PRIVACY Please let us know if this information is incorrect. Would your voter registration address be something different?

Best regards,

Williamson County GOP Contest and Credentialing Committee

The information Brown provided when he registered for the Reorganization Convention was accurate and the Williamson County Elections Commission confirms that he has voted in all four of the last statewide Republican Primaries as a registered voter in Williamson County.

Brown previously served on the Williamson County Election Commission as a commissioner for multiple terms, as chairman of the Williamson County Election Commission for more than a decade, and as a Davidson County Election Commissioner during the 1980s. He now works as an Election Auditor for the Tennessee State Elections Commission.

As a longtime Republican involved in Williamson County and Tennessee politics, Brown has the knowledge and ability to challenge the denial of his right to vote at the convention by the Williamson County Republican Party, but some have expressed concern that many grassroots bona fide Republicans do not have such expertise, and may stay home because of an incorrect determination that effectively disenfranchised them from the Party’s Reorganization process.

These reports emerge as the Brian Clifford and the Williamson County Conservatives strongly challenge the current party leadership, elucidating an apparent conflict of interest, as the current Contests and Credentialing Committee was appointed by many of the incumbent board members now seeking reelection.

Additionally, Clifford has asked Chairman Golden to recuse Republican State Executive Committee Member Cyndi Miller from any involvement with the Williamson County Republican Party other than voting normally as a bona fide Republican, as Cyndi Miller is the wife of incumbent WCRP Chairman Dr. Tracy Miller, illustrating a second apparent conflict of interests, given that the Williamson County Conservatives are specifically challenging the record of the WCRP during Tracy Miller’s tenure.

In 2023, Cyndi Miller failed to recuse herself from contests and credentialing duties when Tracy Miller was running for WCRP Chairman, and many bona fide Republicans reported being turned away and denied their right to vote at that Convention.

To eliminate lingering concerns, Clifford formally requested that Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden replace all members of the Contest and Credentialing Committee with a new, unbiased committee composed of members who do not reside in Williamson County and who have no stake in the outcome of the election.

Golden has declined to exert influence over the allegations in Williamson County, even as some told The Star that concerns that a repeat of the circumstances seen in 2023 would permanently tarnish the Tennessee Republican Party and its leadership to disenfranchised Williamson County voters.

In addition to emails allegedly misinforming bona fide Republicans about their status, a last-minute venue change announced by the current leadership generated more concern.

On February 20, the Williamson County Republican Party changed the convention venue from the previously announced Liberty Hall at the Factory to the Cool Springs Marriott. This unilateral decision by the incumbent party leadership was announced without any conversations or consultations with the Brian Clifford or any of the candidates of the Williamson County Conservatives ticket.

The current leadership at the Williamson County Republican Party has claimed the change was made necessary by intense interest in the event, though just two years ago, the convention was moved from the Marriott to the Factory specifically because more space was needed.

Additionally, the rally was large enough to accommodate President Donald Trump, who in 2015 held one of his first campaign rallies in Liberty Hall at the Factory, where capacity for that room is 1,500 individuals.

The Williamson County Republican Party has never had over 800 people show up for a Reorganization Convention, fueling suspicion about the decision to change the venue with less than two weeks before the event.

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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].
Image “Williamson County Board Meeting” by Williamson County Families.