The Jefferson County Republican Party Executive Committee elected GOP strategist Chris Brown as the Chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party at Thursday’s night meeting. Brown succeeds former State Rep. Paul DeMarco as Chairman.
“I would like to thank the Jefferson County Republican Party for putting its faith in me and electing me Chairman for the next two years,” Brown said. “Thank you, Paul John DeMarco, for your service to our Party. I have big shoes to follow. I want to congratulate Deanna K. Frankowski and Keith Mitchell in being elected Secretary and Treasurer respectfully, as well as the new steering committee and bonus members. But the biggest thanks goes to my campaign manager, Parker Brown! I could not have been elected without him. I’m proud to be his Daddy.”
Chris Brown has already announced plans for the Jeffco GOP:
· Have a 2-year plan developed and adopted by April 2023 (at the latest)
· Communicate with Republican voters year-round through paid and unpaid methods
· Build enthusiasm again among traditional Republican voters to vote all the way down the ballot
· Encourage infrequent Republican voters to vote on a more regular basis
· Register and grow more Republican voters in the County
· Work to expand minority outreach in the County
· Recruit excellent candidates for winnable races
· Build on our already successful ballot security program
· Re-activate and motivate the Council of Clubs so that our Jefferson County Republican Clubs can serve as a gateway to the County Executive Committee
· Help develop future Republican party leaders
Fifteen members were elected to the Jefferson County steering committee. In addition to the 15 elected members, under By-laws Article VII, Section 1 (a), the Chairman can appoint four members to the Steering Committee. These are:
· Johnny Amari
· Joel Blankenship
· Philip Brown
· Kim Bullock
· W.A. Casey
· Joe Domnanovich
· Cindy Douglas
· Gilbert F. Douglas III
· Vicki Fuller
· Joel Kimbrough
· Mike Kozlik
· Lisa Pate
· Teresa Petelos
· Terri Richmond
· Senator Dan Roberts
· Vince Coker (appointed)
· Donna Cude (appointed)
· Paul DeMarco (appointed)
· Waymon Newton (appointed)
Under Article VI, Section 2, the Chairman is entitled to some officer appointments. These will need to be confirmed by the steering committee. Chairman Brown has appointed Phillip Brown as Vice-Chairman, Ben Foster as Chaplain, and Ron Armstrong as Sergeant at Arms.
Gilbert and Cindy Douglas received the Chairman’s Award for Outstanding Service in 2023.
New Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen and ALGOP Chairman John Wahl spoke to the group.
Before the meeting, outgoing Chairman DeMarco wrote, “As we prepare for our first meeting of 2023 and elections tonight, I am grateful and want to thank each of you for the opportunity to serve as Chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party. I am proud of the hard work that members of the executive committee and county GOP clubs have performed. Considering how difficult the past three years have been, we have been so successful in increasing the number the activities and membership in the Jefferson County GOP.”
“We have made a priority to increase the funds in the party with our fundraising,” DeMarco continued. “The Jefferson County Republican Party is in the best financial shape in the history of the party and has the monies to “plow the fields” as we gear up for the next election cycle. There is still much work to be done. However, I am optimistic about our community and the Jefferson County Republican Party. It was an honor to serve.”
While the Alabama Republican Party has thoroughly dominated Alabama politics since 2010, the GOP has increasingly underperformed in Jefferson County. In 2022, incumbent Gov. Kay Ivey easily bested Democratic challenger Yolanda Flowers statewide 66.9% to 29.2%; Jefferson County was one of just 11 of Alabama’s 67 counties that favored Flowers. In the 2020 presidential election, Republican Donald Trump carried 62.2% of the vote in Alabama to Democrat Joe Biden’s 36.6%; however, in Jefferson County, Biden received 55.8% of the vote to Trump’s 42.6%.
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