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Georgia Republican Party

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This article is on the political party of the U.S. state of Georgia. For a political party in the nation of Georgia, see Republican Party of Georgia.
Georgia Republican Party
ChairmanSue Everhart
Founded1854
Headquarters3110 Maple Drive
Atlanta, GA 30305
IdeologyCenter-right
Conservatism
National affiliationRepublican Party
Colorspink (unofficial)
Website
www.gagop.org

The Georgia Republican Party is one of the two major political parties in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is affiliated with the United States Republican Party (GOP).

Current structure

Governor Nathan Deal is the titular head of the Georgia Republican Party. Sue Everhart is the current State Chairman. Kevin Harris is the acting Executive Director after Toby Carr, the previous Executive Director, accepted a position in Nathan Deal's gubernatorial administration. Alec Poitevint, former State Chairman, serves as Republican National Committeeman representing Georgia. Linda Herren serves as the National Committeewoman. Republicans hold every elected position in the state for the first time since Reconstruction.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) is responsible for promoting Republican campaign activities. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. Reince Priebus is the current Chairman of RNC, having won the last election after controversial Chairman Michael Steele withdrew his rebid nomination. The chairman of the RNC is chosen by the President when the Republicans have the White House or otherwise by the Party's state committees. Interestingly, there has never been a chairman from Georgia. The RNC, under the direction of the party's presidential candidate, supervises the Republican National Convention, raises funds, and coordinates campaign strategy. On the local level there are similar state committees in every state and most large cities, counties and legislative districts, but they have far less money and influence than the national body.[1]

Current and recent officeholders were primarily known as Democrats until the gradual change of the South. It was also customary for Southern States to propel actual skilled candidates to office, not career politicians. Character and experience in the South is seemingly a bigger deal than a charismatic figure.

History

After the Civil War, Georgia was initially placed under a military governorship, but in 1868 the Republican Party succeeded in capturing the legislature and electing Rufus Bulloch as governor. Support for the Republicans came from the 44% of the state's population that was African-American, along with whites from the mountainous north. Bulloch was the first Republican governor of Georgia, but he was threatened with impeachment and fled the state in 1871, leaving the governorship to Benjamin Conley, the president of the Georgia Senate. (In modern times the lieutenant governor is the next in line if the governor cannot serve, but the role of lieutenant governor had not yet been created by that time.) Conley, the second Republican governor of the state, only lasted 72 days: the legislature quickly called a special election, and Conley was succeeded by a Democrat.[2]

These former democrats were known as the "Dixiecrats" and for the first time since the civil war, broke up their huge voting power due to the issues that have plagued the South for 100 years.[3]

In 1966 Republican Howard Callaway received the plurality of votes for governor but failed to win, when the election was decided by the Democratic Party-controlled Georgia legislature. In the 1970s, amid the Watergate Scandal, the rise of Democratic President Jimmy Carter from Georgia, led to the self proclaimed "dark days" for the Republican Party that led to a decade of failed elections and tough incidents. Georgia Republicans struggled through the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s to become a major party, occasionally winning victories such as the election of U.S. Senator Mack Mattingly in 1980, only to see those gains erased in subsequent elections. In 2002 Sonny Perdue was elected as the first Republican governor of Georgia since Reconstruction. He served as Governor from 2003-2011 for two terms.

Georgia Republican Party has sent many important Republicans to Washington including Newt Gingrich, and possibly Herman Cain. In the past 20 years, the party has played a key role in the impact that the National Republican Party has left. Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain continue to be top contenders in the 2012 Republican Presidential Election.[4]

Education

Working to create a generation of students that can compete nationally and globally. Georgia is committed to help define the information that students need to learn, increasing the curriculum, and provide a competitive learning environment for students to excel. Eliminating the Department of Education and instituting state-wide curriculums that focuse on Southern history is imperative. Providing funding to extra curriculular opportunities like sporting events, will give students resolve to enjoy their education and to take ownership of their own. We have the opportunity to recruit and reward the best teachers due to winning $400 million of the Race to the Top, a program instituted by President Obama, which focuses on offering grants to competitive schools who hire effective educators. It's with this funding that we look to ensure students are focused and ready to compete not just in high school, but in college, and in the global economy. We are committed to constructing graphs to show student development and growth, so we can provide feedback on where instructors need to improve on. Our education system is paramount to everything, so we look forward to ensuring that funding and access is provided to provide an effective education for all children of Georgia.[5]

Public Safety

We must ensure our laws are obided by and our officers are well trained and equiped. We must work to find ways to reduce recidivism among non violent offenders, and to promote opportunity for these individuals so our prisons aren't overcrowded. It's in our best interest to modernize our laws to help these individuals adjust to society and not be shunned due to past addictions. Being a Southern state, we must take immigration seriously. We have a major population of Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and Mexicans that call Georgia home. We must not only ensure that these individuals aren't discriminated against, but also ensure that they are paying into our system responsibly and not being a burden to our state. It's in the citizens best interest to materialize a solution to ensure that illegal immigrants are held responsible and pay for the opportunities that, living in Georiga, provides.[6]

ObamaCare

Our state will be greatly affected by Obamacare. The mandated coverage will provide insurance to 650,000 citizens at the expense of taxpayers. As a Southern state, we have always prided ourselves in smaller government, and taking issue with economic strains that Washington will give our citizens. The new program will increase participation by 45 percent, which is great for the non coverered, but comes at a terrible time for the federal government to increase the financial burden on out of job Americans. We are committed to providing affordable, private healthcare for Georgians, even pushing to open up the market to bring down costs, to create a competitive nature. Georgia is one of the states currently offering dissent to the mandated law, and will wait to see where the Supreme Court falls in line. We urge the Supreme Court to let states decide about their own insurance policies.[7]

News

A congressional candidate in 2010, Jody Hice, portrayed President Barack Obama as a communist by using billboards representing a hammer and sickle symbol. The symbol was associated with an iron fist portraying 20th century dictators.[8]

A study from 2001 to April 2011 shows that Georgia had the fifth lowest private sector job growth rate. Also, in July 2011, Georgia ranked 50th in job creation with a loss of 24,900 jobs from July 2010, to July 2011. The state's unemployment rate rose to 10.1 percent in the month of July.[9]

On September 28, 2011, it was revealed that Georgia intends to move their Republican Primary to Super Tuesday by December 1. The party feels that it should play a bigger role due to its size and number of delegates, and is moving forward with the notion that it can have an important say in this next election. Georgia Republican Party Chairwoman Sue Everhart said that having an early primary would make Georgia a bigger player in 2012. She added that she did not want to see the state lose delegates by going before March. "Since we became a red state, they haven't paid much attention to us," Everhart said, referring to GOP candidates and the RNC. "They use us as a donor state."[10]

Right to work state

Georgia is a right to work state. In right to work states, employees can decide if they want to financially support or join a union. Most states in the South are right to work states.[11]

Symbols and name

The mascot (symbol) of the Georgia Republican Party is the elephant. The elephant was originally constructed by artist Thomas Nast, in response to the criticism of a possible third term by President Ulysses S. Grant.

Depiction of party symbols

The cartoon's image was taken from one of Aesop’s fables, “The Ass in the Lion’s Skin.” It follows up with, “At last coming upon a fox, he [the ass] tried to frighten him also, but the fox no sooner heard the sound of his voice than he exclaimed, ‘I might possibly have been frightened myself, if I had not hear your bray.’” "The moral of the fable is that although a fool may disguise his appearance, his words will reveal his true nature. To Nast, the New York Herald is not a roaring lion to be feared, but a braying ass to be ridiculed. The reference in the citation to “Shakespeare or Bacon” is a jibe at Bennett’s contention that Shakespeare’s works were actually written by Sir Francis Bacon."

In modern day, the symbol of the elephant is seen as a regular commodity, showing up on campaign merchandise and other party materials. Ordinary people would most likely not understand the rise of the elephant, or its history, but understand the symbolic nature of the beast in today's political climate.

The elephant for the GOP rivals the Democrats' donkey.[12]

Current Republican officeholders

The Republican Party of Georgia controls both U.S. Senate seats and 8 of the 13 U.S. House seats. Republicans also control all 13 of the 13 state constitutional offices.

Federal
State

Past Republican governors

In 2002 Sonny Perdue was elected as the first Republican governor of Georgia since Reconstruction. He earned a doctorate from University of Georgia in 1971 in Veterinary Medicine. He served in the US Air Force, earning the rank of Captain, before receiving his honorable discharge and starting up a small business in Raleigh, N.C. He served 10 years beginning in 1990 as a Democrat in the Georgia State Senate, including a tenure as majority leader in 1995-1996. He served as Governor from 2003-2011 for two terms.[13]

References

  1. ^ GOP Chairmen.http://content.usatoday.com/communities/onpolitics/post/2011/01/reince-priebus-republican-national-committee-chairman/
  2. ^ GA GOP History.http://www.gagop.org/history-of-the-ga-gop/
  3. ^ Dixiecrats.http://www.gagop.org/history-of-the-ga-gop/
  4. ^ Gingrich & Cain.http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57322894-503544/poll-cain-tops-3-way-race-with-romney-gingrich/
  5. ^ Republican Governor Nathan Deal.http://www.georgia.gov/00/channel_title/0,2094,165937316_165941802,00.html
  6. ^ Republican Governor Nathan Deal.http://www.georgia.gov/00/channel_title/0,2094,165937316_165941802,00.html
  7. ^ Republican Governor Nathan Deal.http://www.georgia.gov/00/channel_title/0,2094,165937316_165941802,00.html
  8. ^ Jody Hice.http://rncnyc2004.blogspot.com/2010/07/jody-hice-billboards-calling-out-obama.html
  9. ^ Job Creation.http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2011/08/22/georgia-50th-in-job-creation-in-july.html
  10. ^ Primary.http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/local_news/Sources-Say-Ga.-Primary-to-be-March-6-20110928-ap-pk
  11. ^ Right To Work.http://www.nrtw.org/c/gartwlaw.htm
  12. ^ Symbol.http://weburbanist.com/2010/11/07/political-animal-the-ever-evolving-republican-elephant-logo/
  13. ^ Sonny Perdue.http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2801

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