A lawsuit by the Catoosa County Republican Party seeking to assert its ability to screen candidates for GOP primary elections, rather than let voters choose from an open field of contenders, has been revived by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The party last year attempted to reject four candidates from running for office, after inviting them to an interview and holding them up to the 20-point party platform. County election officials allowed the four to run under an order from Catoosa County Superior Court.
Party provisions
Sample planks from the Georgia Republican Party platform that were used to vet Catoosa County candidates:
– We believe in balanced budgets and the reduction of public debt.
– We believe that revenues collected at all levels of government should be used only for well-defined, legitimate government functions and should be carried out efficiently so that tax rates may be kept as low as possible.
– We believe that immigration policies and laws should be written to promote the interests of the American people as a whole rather than any particular special interest group.
Read the entire platform at bit.ly/GOP-platform
Three of the candidates were incumbent Republican elected officials, and one was a former officeholder. The incumbents were Larry Black, chair of the County Commission, along with Commissioners Vanita Hullander and Jeff Long. Also affected was Steven Henry, a former commission chair seeking to return to office. After the four were allowed to appear on the ballot, Henry and Long went on to prevail in the election.
United States District Judge William Ray II in September dismissed the party’s ongoing lawsuit, rejecting its argument that the constitutional right to free association allowed rejection of the candidates.
“Trying to limit who can run in a primary seems inconsistent with the purpose of a primary to start with,” Ray said. “Perhaps the Catoosa Republican Party doesn’t believe that the citizens of Catoosa County can for themselves intelligently decide which candidates best embody the principles of the Republican Party. The court does not share such sentiment.”
(READ MORE: Incumbent chair reelected amid strife at Catoosa County GOP event)
The appeals court on Thursday found Ray erred in dismissing the case, ordering that it proceed. The court relied on a 1992 case in which the Georgia GOP was allowed to reject white supremacist David Duke from appearing on the ballot as a Republican.
“Plaintiffs have established an actual, particularized and concrete burden on their freedom of association,” the ruling states. “Acting under its rules, the Catoosa GOP sought to exclude certain candidates from the primary ballot because it viewed them as ideologically outside the local party.”
The party issued a statement praising the appeals court ruling.
“At a time when political identity is under constant attack, this decision is a powerful defense of our most cherished freedoms – the right to speak, to associate and to stand firmly for what we believe,” the statement said. “The United States remains a beacon of liberty precisely because of protections enshrined in the First Amendment. This is a victory not only for the Catoosa GOP but for every American who values freedom, integrity and principled leadership.”
Hullander did not respond to a request for comment on the ruling. Henry said he’s glad the case will proceed through a ruling on the merits. He said he thinks the party vetting process will be rejected in the end.
“I’m on the side of the people being able to pick whoever they want,” he said. “It should always be the will of the people. I’ll be honest with you, I’ve been on the side where I’ve lost, and you know, I do really appreciate the will of the people, but it is what it is. It’s what they choose. And then that’s why we have a system set up like we do. I think it ought to always be with the voters, all of them, not just 10 or 12 of them.”
Contact Ricky Young at ryoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6260.