Ron Paul Texas Delegate InformationA delegate is a super-voter; They get to vote for the GOP nominee. Regular voters will be voting to determine the number of delegates for the candidates in the Texas Primary on March 4th; Regular voters can't vote for the GOP nominee. Now you can understand why it's so important to become a delegate because delegates determine who the GOP nominee is!
The ONLY mandatory requirement to be a Republican delegate is to VOTE in the Republican primary election on March 4, 2008. In Texas (different than some other states), you do NOT register to vote with a particular Party – we have what’s called an “open” primary, meaning people who vote against Republicans in the general election are still allowed to vote in the GOP primaries years. Here’s how the process will work in 2008:
March 4, 2008 (Tuesday): Primary Election Day and Precinct Convention: After you VOTE in the Primary, your registration card needs to be stamped “Republican”. Ask the election judge for the location of the “Republican Precinct Convention” for your local precinct and go there. It begins after the polls close at 7:00 PM, between 7:30PM and 8:30PM, usually at or very near the polling place (e.g. library, church, elementary school, etc.).
Every voter is assigned to a neighborhood precinct. Each precinct has a “delegate strength”, a number of allocated convention delegates for the next level convention, based on the number of Republican Primary votes for Governor Rick Perry in 2006. If you live in a strongly Democrat precinct, you may have only one or two Republican delegates. If you live where I do (Precinct #333), a strong Republican precinct, you may have a dozen or more delegates. Each delegate position also has an “alternate” delegate spot – alternate delegates may attend the next convention and be “seated” (with voting rights) if a delegate fails to show up. As a rule, every "alternate" who shows up always gets seated, but there are always plenty of "delegate" no-shows. (But of course, it's always better to be delegate than alternate.)
Most of these "precinct conventions" are very poorly attended, and typically there are more delegate/alternate places than people to fill them, so it’s usually easy to get elected as delegate at the precinct level. WE CAN ORGANIZE AND PLAN for all this now with plenty of time.
At your precinct convention, there will be a packet on the table. The precinct chairman usually picks it up and calls the meeting to order. After which, you'll elect a permanent chairman (not to be confused with precinct chairman) that presides over your convention; The permanent chairman is kind of like a judge. Next, you'll elect a secretary; The secretary handles all the paperwork, the list of delegates, etc. The secretary may easily be the most important position in the entire precinct convention process. There may be a sergeant-at-arms election (kind of like a bodyguard) but that's optional. The most important part of the entire convention is the delegate selection. You can nominate someone to be elected as a delegate or nominate yourself. In fact, you can have a whole list of delegates written down on a sheet of paper ahead of time and just vote for the entire list! If you have the majority, you'll get all your delegates to the next convention! It's that easy! Please make sure you know the rules and process so you'll be prepared; Remember, chance favors the prepared mind.
If they try to railroad you, learn and know Robert's Rules of Order (below). Your precinct convention will be run like a court trial---objection, point of order, etc. Learn these words (http://statedelegate.notlong.com Step B) and you'll rule the precinct convention!
The key is to get your friends, family and neighbors to flood your precinct convention so that you outnumber and outvote them! Even if you don't wish to be a delegate, you can still help tremendously by attending your precinct convention on March 4th and vote for those who want to become Ron Paul delegates! That would really help Ron Paul secure the GOP nomination. Remember, "many hands make light work". :)
IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS TO REVIEW BEFORE GOING TO YOUR PRECINCT CONVENTION:
1. Rules for Delegate Selection / Conventions of the Texas GOP (Rule 21 for the precinct convention but go through it all)
2. Robert's Rules of Order (your bible to the precinct convention)
3. COMPLETE Precinct Convention Packet (not the official but you can get an idea of what it will look like)
March 29, 2008 (Saturday): Senatorial District or County Convention: Delegates/alternates (D/A) from the precinct convention may attend the County or Senatorial District Convention. In metropolitan counties (Harris, Bexar, Travis, etc.), multiple Senatorial District Conventions are held (Travis has two, SD-14 and SD-25, with most of us in the northern SD-14). In rural counties, there is one County Convention. The SD Convention is on a Saturday, from early morning until late afternoon or evening. The SD Convention has several purposes: to review party rules, to consider resolutions for the party platform (submitted from Precinct Conventions), and to elect D/A for the State Convention. It’s usually more competitive to get to the State Convention, but rules have recently changed allowing local Precincts to elect their own State D/A (provided they have sufficient strength). There is also a “nominations committee” that picks D/A from at-large – and this is typically where those who control the SD stack the deck with their own delegates, meaning the entire SD delegation voting strength at the State Convention will be controlled by those who control the SD Convention itself. It is very difficult, but still possible, for Ron Paul supporters to control a SD delegation to the State Convention.
June 12-14 Houston: Texas State Convention: D/A from the SD and County Conventions are invited to the State Convention. The official duties here are the same as the other conventions: possibly revise State Party rules and consider resolutions for the Texas Republican Platform. You will also be pounded with mind-numbing speeches and from incumbent politicians and prodded to cheer. FACT: The Texas Republican State Convention is the largest political party meeting in the world! Some 15,000 people can be in attendance in some role. In the decades since 1964, the importance of the Convention conclusions have become less and less important, but the attendance is still remarkable – it’s an amazing networking opportunity. Again, the Texas Convention will pass a Platform (which will be completely ignored by the National Convention), possibly make rule changes, and will elect D/A to the National Convention. These elections (for National Republican delegates) are extremely competitive and virtually always decided well in advance of the State Convention, and the D/As chosen are typically decades-long hard core party loyalists. A century ago, these people were chosen with authority to select the Party’s candidate for President. Now, election as a D/A may be viewed as a ticket to an expensive party – a reward for loyal party service. And note that all political analysts will expect (and hope) the Party’s choice for President will be decided months before the State Convention begins.
September 4th, 2008 -- Republican National Convention at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota.