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NewsAUDIO GOP Doing The Tangier Tango
4/30/2008 6:56:30 PM | Edward L. Esposito
Alex Arshinkoff scores a hat trick, winning as chair of the Summit County Central Committee, approval of his committee rules and his slate for executive committee and officers.
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Note: reports were filed using "blog style" timeline reporting.
Winner Alex Arshinkoff on surviving the challenge (part one)
Arshinkoff on possible legal challenges of his victory
Carol Klinger talks with AkronNewsNow on what's next
10:56pm FINAL
The ballroom is almost clear, just a few stragglers as the winning Arshinkoff team including Grendell, Laria and Morrison moving on to Luigi's for a celebratory pizza. The key vote this evening was the first secret ballot tally where Arshinkoff topped Varian 260-115 in a straight-up race for chair of the Central Committee. After that there was wrangling over rules and other votes but for the most part the tone had changed. Afterwards, both sides pledged to put aside their differences and move ahead on coming up with revised rules acceptable to either faction and work toward winning key races in November. Arshinkoff made electing Jim Laria in his County Executive race against incumbent Russ Pry a top priority; Klinger says she has no regrets on leading the charge for change within the party and promised to put her energies into backing the Republican ticket in November.
10:23pm
By show of hands the Arshinkoff-backed rules passed.
10:17pm
There is considerable back-and-forth over the rules under which the Central Committee operates. Both sides seem amenable to suspending a vote on the rules, if acceptable under state law, in order to give both factions the opportunity to work on compromise rules. The mood in the room is to suspend the rules but Arshinkoff argues a set of rules needs to be adopted with critical fundraising needs ahead of the general election. He is asking the Committee now to pass a set of rules with the caveat that both factions meet by October 15th to have amended rules ready for the full committee to vote on. This is the first time both factions have a clear agreement on an issue and there is a clear feeling shown by most members to resolve their business. Both factions are now talking up their respective rules.
10:02pm
Brian Daley was nominated from the Arshinkoff slate, Dan Dismuke from the Klinger slate. A show of hands gave the vote to Daley. Varian moved to forward other officer nominations using the slates of each respective side. By voice vote the Arshinkoff slate wins. Among the items of business remaining to be done: approval of the rules, and election of the executive committee. This sets up another potential confrontation; Morrison moved that rules be voted upon by secret ballot without any changes from the floor. One member (identified as Ken Kohler) took the floor and said both sets of rules were designed for a floor fight and would poison the party; Arshinkoff noted the Committee, by law, was required to pass their rules in this organizational meeting. Now there is a table-by-table vote on whether to vote on the rules by secret ballot.
9:51pm
Arshinkoff is clearly delighted the result gave him a 145-count margin. He is now telling members he was pleased the vote was conducted under a "transparent process", adding an independent audit of the books would be performed. Arshinkoff choked up when he said "Karen and I want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts." Now Morrison is moving to dispense with secret ballot on the election of all other officers and vote by show of hands after consultation with Varian; Arshinkoff asked if Coughlin was in favor of the change. Varian notes it took an hour to go through the process. A voice vote carried and now voting of officers is underway.
9:35pm
The winner after nearly 50 minutes of counting handwritten ballots from plastic bins is heading Alex Arshinkoff's way, by a nearly two-to-one margin over Don Varian for election to a two-year term as chair of the Central Committee. There is still at least one more container to go in counting voters who weren't lucky enough to get seats and a stuffed chicken dinner -- or the pecan pie to follow. This first secret vote tally may be a strong barometer of how the rest of the evening is likely to go, as is observations from lawyers in the room who lean toward challenging Arshinkoff's ability to serve without first winning election by popular vote.
9:18pm
Each vote is being read aloud on ruling of Arshinkoff as temporary chair; Coughlin offered to allow tellers to count votes while committee members took a restroom break but Arshinkoff said he wanted to keep the vote in the open. It's important to note the party has two video cameras running to capture the action with one specifically pointed to the vote announcement as ballots for Arshinkoff and Varian are read one-by-one.
8:56pm
There are 378 members now voting, including one person who arrived late and was sworn in by Judge Slaby. The tellers are moving along the tables with their plastic bins, collecting handwritten ballots in the Arshinkoff-Varian race for the two-year term as chairman of the Central Committee.
8:40pm
The first round of voting goes to secret ballot after Arshinkoff asks for and gets motions and a voice vote to hold the vote with three vote-tellers from each side handling the vote, with Board of Elections deputy director Bryan Williams acting as chief teller. There was a motion opposing Williams but it was withdrawn after some laughs when Arshinkoff noted Williams was the most "bifurcated" person in the room since he worked for Elections Board GOP members Varian and Arshinkoff ally Jack Morrison. The committee is now in the process of using Rubbermaid containers as ballot boxes.
8:34pm
The fireworks are underway with a challenge to the nomination of Arshinkoff as temporary chair for the purpose of electing officers of the Central Committee; Board of Elections member Don Varian challenged the nomination on grounds Arshinkoff wasn't an elected member of the board but opponents wouldn't fight any elected committee member serving in that capacity. There was discussion of the motion and challenge with Grendell ruling nothing in state law prohibited a non-member from serving as temporary chair. Move to close and voice vote on the motion with Arshinkoff supporters out-voicing Arshinkoff critics. Arshinkoff took the gavel and introduced Auditor Mary Taylor, who moved Arshinkoff as Central Committee chair. Laria seconded. Now Coughlin is speaking and asks if all candidates will have an opportunity to speak; Arshinkoff responded yes. There is question on whether the Chair of the Central Committee must be a member of the Committee, and Grendell reports it is legal for a non-elected committee member to serve. Now Coughlin is nominating Varian for the post, seconded from the floor. Varian is speaking to the full Committee, making a point to put distance between he and Wayne Jones; Varian says local Democrats want to see the Summit GOP continue under the current leadership, and is asking for leadership to unite rather than divide.
8:07pm
Midway through the M's others making visits: Ron Kopp, Roetzel & Andress and the Beacon Journal's media lawyer. He won a spot on the Central Committee by one vote. State Auditor Mary Taylor is a late arrival.
7:58pm
We're underway with the first sniping by a committee member who wanted to know if Roberts Rules of Order would be followed; the answer was the agenda had been set and Ohio Revised Code would be followed but there was no direct yes or no, followed by shouts to answer the question or sit down. Eventually the answer was yes and now the roll call for 470 members is being held. Also this update: there is an American flag in the room; it was obscured by show curtains at the front of the room.
7:42pm
The games are almost ready to begin; the main players are in the house, with Arshinkoff overseeing placement of voting tables, Kevin Coughlin and Don Varian able to eat dinner as committee members and Carol Klinger against the wall, sitting with this reporter in the seats with no eats. Best line of the night so far: one committee member ambling into the room, asking "...is Wayne Jones (the Summit Democrat Finance Chair) running." There are dozens of lapel stickers urging committee members to "Stop the Wayne Jones Takeover"...
7:18pm
While the staff navigates the tiny 18-inch spaces between tables a couple notes on the opening ceremonies...the big hand for the evening clearly went to Jim Laria, Clerk of Courts who will face Russ Pry for the Summit Executive's job in November. There was also a warm reception for the lineup of candidates here as well as Karen Arshinkoff, wife of the under-siege chairman. The head table also includes State Senator Tim Grendell and former Hudson councilman Brian Daley; Grendell is the party's lawyer in the suit challenging Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner's refusal to seat Arshinkoff and Daley to the county Board of Elections and will likely serve in an advisory role to Arshinkoff's supporters tonight. Ninth District Appeals Judge Lynn Slaby provided the invocation with most of the audience seated since they couldn't rise dueto cramped quarters -- the reason why the traditional Pledge of Allegience was dispensed with since it was determined one couldn't give the Pledge while still seated. Besides, there's no Old Glory in the room.
6:58pm
It is standing -- and sitting -- room only in the big ballroom at the Tangier, with all of the small side rooms off the hallway leading to the room packed with candidates and GOP volunteers getting in their last minute licks. This is what the furor of the past few months comes down to, with longtime incumbent Chairman Alex Arshinkoff greeting GOP Central Committee members, guests and even the media in a reception line from the front doors and Carol Klinger, the Cuyahoga Falls Council representative challenging the Old Guard strategically placed at the doorway directly entering the ballroom.
Both seem composed although the trappings are far different; Arshinkoff has both a personal photographer taking pictures as well as an Akron Beacon Journal photog snapping photos as he welcomes folks. There is no posse for Klinger, standing alone with a handshake and smile for all to see directly before entering the ballroom.
For those seated at row upon row of tables lines north to south it's shoulder-to-shoulder with an opening round of salad and ranch dressing.
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Comments
posted at 4/30/2008 8:22:33 PM (1398)
Something smells funny ... said:
Did the press not get to eat because they didn't pony up the fifty dollars required? By the way, did that fifty dollars include the "Wayne Jones" sticker?
posted at 5/1/2008 8:38:25 AM (1402)
historybuff said:That's it! Summit GOP, don't even approach me for any kind of donation. NOT ONE PENNY. You messed this one up royally. Did we not have the opportunity to dump a mistake, but YOU PEOPLE blew it. How much were the Dems paying you under the table for this renewed mess?
posted at 5/1/2008 9:24:26 AM (1407)
Anonomous said:So this is how Liberty dies? Thru thunderous aplause? If all a majority of the alexis supporters were interested in was eating, voting, and going home then they should not be in the Central Committee. Basiclly he squashed all discussion, had his supportters shout people down (alot were not on the Central Committee, why were they allowed in the room?) Got himself nominated as Chair of the Central Committee (he is not a member of it, is that leagal?) and railroaded it.
posted at 5/1/2008 11:59:19 AM (1408)
dkd458 said:
I also am not pleased with the results but we should not abandon the Republican Party. Republican Voter Registration is now down to 8.77% and we cannot take back the party if people of principle leave. I am disappointed as well but letting Democrats win elections will not help either. This is the same problem many of us have with McCain. He's not who we want, he doesn't represent what we believe in but the answer is not less involvement it is more involvement. We can't leave these things to other people or we probably won't like the result. Get involved. Help candidates and tell them you are doing it in spite of your disagreement with the leadership. Then run for Central Committee in 2 years.
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