A Message from the Chairman

A message from the Chairman:

Hello Pender County Residents,

Primary Season is upon us!

Quite often, especially during Primary Season the local Party is targeted with allegations from candidates/residents about how we have handled a situation. While the party officials are far from perfect, I don’t recall in the 6 years that I have been involved here (or know of anything prior) where rules were intentionally violated during the Primary season or General Elections.

There have been discussions with residents/candidates which resulted in your local Party updating rules and creating new policies/best practices. This occurred as recently as last week. There have also been errors and mistakes made which were corrected to the best of our ability.

It is absolutely good to question “how and why” things are done the way they are and we encourage you to continue doing this. While some policies are firm, others remain fluid and we can adjust as needed.

This season we have started hot and heavy!

Over the last month we have been threatened with a lawsuit, and have seen several vague comments/posts on social media referring to “shady” conversations or emails from the local Party’s officials and/or their spouses. None have been validated or have gone further when the Party has pressed the claim. One of the “claims” has been removed from Social media, the other is still out there and the individual making the claim has yet to return phone calls or emails to discuss the matter.

After another email this morning from a resident referencing a supposed conversation, I want to publicly address something.

For the record, there was no "Release holy hell" and  "Kids are fair game" conversation by my wife referring to a candidates children. Prove me wrong with names & witnesses. Let's bring this to the light, shall we? 

The Party intends to be aggressive if and when we see/hear of future incidents similar to the above. The goal here is to not have vague allegations lingering over anyone’s head, without proof that something inappropriate has been done. The Party won't be the scapegoat this year.

Again, the party officials are far from perfect, but we work very hard in this volunteer position to ensure the rules are followed and we partner with all candidates to ensure they are represented fairly and have an equal playing field. Ultimately, the responsibility is on you the voter to elect the most qualified candidates. 

If there is something that is/has been done that you feel is unfair or unjust, please address it, but be clear, be factual, be ready to have a conversation like adults with the intention to resolve an issue, not to create clickbait.

The Party cannot and will not endorse any candidate during the Primary Season.

The Party will stand behind and support all of our Primary Winners in the General Election.

Thank you,

Joshua Smith

Chairman, Pender County GOP