Chairman’s Update – July 11th, 2012

Greetings Fellow Republicans!

Early voting is underway for the July 31 primary election, and we will have our nominees for Congress, the General Assembly, and county commission offices before we know it. This primary season has been an exciting one, and as the Chairman of the Republican Party, I am pleased to say that none of the races has gotten particularly negative. When I ran my own race, I pledged that I would not speak ill of my opponents, and it heartens me that this has been followed by the vast majority of our candidates this primary season. After all, we are all Republicans.

In case you missed it, I wanted to bring to your attention a news item from this week. The Washington Post/ABC News poll of the presidential race (I know, I don’t trust either of those news outlets, either!) found that the race between Governor Romney and the incumbent is deadlocked at 47% each, which is similar to almost every other recent national poll. But there was a statement from the article that I thought you might find interesting: “At this point, 74 percent of all voters are “definitely” supporting Obama or Romney, and 12 percent say it is unlikely that they will switch from one to the other, making the race a settled issue for nearly nine in 10 voters. For both campaigns, such a high level of early commitment shifts the focus to turnout — and to which side can muster the most effective get-out-the-vote operation.”

Folks, this is why we are here – in an election where almost 90% of the people have decided who they will support, it becomes all the more important for us to maximize the number of decided Republicans at the polls. With that in mind, we have designed a grassroots mobilization strategy beginning Monday, Sept. 10 (the week after the Dems’ convention “spectacle”), in which we will focus our efforts on a single GOP district within the county each week for five straight weeks, directing all volunteer activity to those areas for those weeks. We will make phone calls, go door to door, visit high school football games, attend festivals and fairs, and register Republicans to vote. I hope that you will join us for even a couple of hours a week as we undertake this effort – no matter what you like to do, there will be an opportunity for you.

You have a good reason to arrive early for our County Committee meeting tomorrow night, July 12, at Gwinnett GOP headquarters (46 S. Clayton St., Lawrenceville). Beginning at 6:30 p.m., the Gwinnett Teen Republicans will be holding a special fundraiser at the HQ, selling Rita’s Italian Ices, which will taste great on a hot day. Join us before the meeting for this special time of fun and fellowship, and support these young people who will become the future of our party. You must be registered by 7:30 p.m. in order to vote in the special election for Secretary, and you should have received a previous email detailing the criteria for voting in the election. We will also discuss the grassroots mobilization plan for the fall at this meeting.

As a reminder, you may vote at the Gwinnett County Elections Office (455 Grayson Highway, Suite 200, Lawrenceville) Monday-Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., through July 27. In addition, you may vote at the elections office on Saturday, July 21, and at four satellite locations in Dacula, Snellville, Norcross, and Suwanee between July 23-27. Voting on election day, July 31, will occur at your regular polling place.

As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,
Bruce LeVell
Chairman