1st District GOP Convention

Spent the majority of the day in Gloucester County at the 1st District GOP Convention. Several elections were contested, but the biggest news of the day was who lost rather than who won – and lost badly too.

Congratulations to Jim Bowden, Dennis Lister, and John Van Hoy for their election to RPV State Central Committee. The three conservatives won by overwhelming margins against Chichester-supported Stafford GOP Chairman Steven Apicella.

In addition, Apicella lost the races for RNC Delegate by wide margins as well to Sherwood Bowditch, John Van Hoy, and Shelia Riley. Barbara Tillich, Rob Stuber, and Janet Jackson all polled strong second place finishes as alternates to our delegates.

And of course, Yvonne McCoy was overwhelmingly elected as Elector over former Stafford supervisor candidate Tom Coen. Yvonne is an old favorite with the committee, so no big surprise there.

To add to the mix, the committee passed four resolutions against the Chichester tax hikes, in the defense of pro-life values, in defense of traditional marriage, and finally in support of Rep. Jo Ann Davis.

All in all, a very conservative climate at the 1st District. Moderates were crushed by huge margins (for instance, for SCC Apicella scraped together 121 delegate votes, while Bowden won 421 votes out of 465).

A big win for anti-tax, pro-life conservatives today in the 1st District, and a huge loss for anyone who might think that RPV is showing signs of strain. Conservatives are angry and mobilized, and it looks as if the consternation from the Chichester tax hikes will last indefinitely.