In this installment, candidate Paul Simpson tells voters what his top three issues are in his quest to be Chair of the Harris County Republican Party.
People
Numbers are key to victory. The Harris County Republican Party must more effectively use its resources and expand its base. But the Party has atrophied. With some 50{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} precinct chairs vacant, it lacks a physical presence in much of the county. (The opposition has about half as many vacancies, with the same or fewer number even in Republican strongholds.) The Party must re-emphasize grassroots activism and organization. The Party should better direct and support volunteers with training and practical support for communicating with and mobilizing voters across the county. The Party should better coordinate planning and activities with candidates and Republican clubs. Expand the leadership and never turn away a volunteer.
The Party must expand its demographic & geographic base to avoid becoming a permanent minority party in Harris County. The Party is not a club. The Party must grow in areas not traditionally Republican. We cannot cede metropolitan areas to our opponents. The Party should work with compatible groups to build trust and relationships with more citizens. The Party should build alliances and participate in local activities and solving local problems across the county.
Money
Money is essential to meeting our goals. But the Party’s funding base has shriveled. It relies excessively on candidates and officeholders to fund the very Party that should support them. The Party needs an outside audit and its finances on a sound footing to gain credibility. It must show serious, credible plans and capability to merit financial support. And the Party should again engage with the business community, large and small, to expand and enhance its financial base at all levels.
Message
Our message must motivate. This need involves both substance and process. First, sound doctrine is sound politics. The Party’s message should emphasize our energetic and dynamic conservative vision of free enterprise, personal liberty, and traditional values. It should energize Republicans. It should forcefully promote conservative principles with a positive, respectful, non-shrill tone. The Party must promote straight-party voting to win down-ballot races. And the best defense is a good offense: our message must expose our opponents’ flaws and failings. Second, how we broadcast our message must keep pace with the times. Online and horizontal communications and social media should supplement traditional top-down messaging. The Party’s message should be the voice of an organization and its principles, not a megaphone or vehicle for one individual.