Washington County GOP Booth Controversy

There was a little dust up at the Washington County GOP booth at the county fair.

The Republican challenger for the 59th Assembly District said his party shut him out of their county fair booth.

   Karl McCarty, who challenges incumbent Daniel LeMahieu for the 59th Assembly District seat this fall, said Washington County GOP booth workers hid the pamphlets he brought to the booth in the Ziegler Family Expo Center Tuesday.

   “I don’t know why,” McCarty said. “I’m a Republican running in a Republican primary. I don’t know what they’re afraid of.”

   McCarty returned to the booth Thursday with a handful of supporters with signs and pamphlets, standing beside the GOP booth and shaking hands with passers-by. Signs and pamphlets for LeMahieu, who has held the Assembly since 2003, could be seen at the GOP booth.

   Jim Geldreich, chairman of the Washington County GOP, said the party has already endorsed the Republican incumbents this year.

   “We can’t allow the challengers in our booth,” Geldreich said.

I received this from Jim Geldreich.

“The Washington County Republican Party has endorsed all of our Republican incumbents.  We do not allow challengers to our incumbents into our fair booth to campaign or distribute their literature.  Our policy regarding candidates in our fair booth was explained to Mr. McCarty on Tuesday, July 22 by Washington County GOP Vice-Chairman Kathy Kiernan.  For the record, Mr. McCarty never contacted us before the start of the County Fair requesting permission to appear in our booth.  It is quite presumptuous of him to expect carte blanche entry to our booth as he chooses.  We pay several hundred dollars to rent the space for our booth, and our organization reserves the right to formulate policy with regard to who may or may not appear there.  If Mr. McCarty wants to distribute his campaign literature at the Washington County Fair, then he should’ve rented his own booth as Senator Glenn Grothman did in 2004 when he challenged an incumbent.”

Jim Geldreich, Chairman
Washington County Republican Party