'Unparalleled level of cronyism' in Butler County?

A week after a candidate for John Boehner's vacated congressional seat complained about what he called an "unparalleled level of cronyism" in Butler County's Republican Party, the party overwhelmingly voted against adding almost 100 members to its Executive Committee.

It was a stunning turn of events, which happened in part because the move to appoint so many people a few days before endorsing a candidate just didn't pass the smell test, one member said.

Butler County GOP Chairman Todd Hall had vigorously defended the proposed appointees, which some inside and outside of the party believed would help Boehner essentially pick his own successor.

Butler County is the largest county in the overwhelmingly Republican Eighth Congressional District, which also is made up of Clark, Miami, Darke, Preble and parts of Mercer counties.

A united Butler County GOP would likely push its preferred candidate to victory, but a split vote could open the door for a congressional candidate from somewhere else in the district.

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The Butler County Republican Party's Central Committee met Tuesday to consider 91 new appointments to the Executive Committee. Unlike the Central Committee, Executive Committee members do not have to be elected by voters.

They do, however, have a considerable voice in endorsing candidates.

Ann Becker, president of the Cincinnati Tea Party and a former member of Butler County's Central Committee, told The Enquirer she was concerned about the potential appointments.

Becker is part of a nonprofit organization, the Ohio Precinct Project, that travels around the state to educate residents about the political committee process.

"The real purpose of the Central Committee is to be the group of Republicans who screen candidates and give an endorsement," she said. "(But) it is frustrating when Executive Committee members have the same voting privileges as those who were elected (on the Central Committee). Your voice almost becomes washed out."

Boehner was one of the people on the list of potential appointees. As was presumed front-runner Butler County Auditor Roger Reynolds and his biggest challenger in the county, state Rep. Tim Derickson, of Hanover Township.

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Other names on the list, obtained by The Enquirer, included several county employees and elected officials such as Sheriff Richard Jones, Chief Deputy Anthony Dwyer, Prosecutor Michael Gmoser, Bailiff Greg Blakenship, Assistant Prosecutor Brad Burress and Coroner Lisa Mannix.

Former Troy teacher J.D. Winteregg, who lost to Boehner in the 2014 GOP primary and is running again this election, called the timing "suspicious" and a clear way to "stack the vote" for an endorsement of Reynolds.

The Enquirer first reported in October the former Speaker of the House was working behind-the-scenes to drum up support for Reynolds.

Butler County GOP's Central Committee rejected the appointees in a 62-38 vote Tuesday. Members inside the party said Hall, who could not immediately be reached for comment, was furious with the decision.

Hall previously told The Enquirer the accusations of cronyism were "unfortunate and misleading." He said Winteregg, of Miami County, was "desperate for any type of press to spur his candidacy."

But the Central Committee's decision to reject the appointees also meant the party lost out on more than $13,000. That's because, according to the party's bylaws, new appointees must must pay $150 to become official voting members.

Becker said the process of paying for membership is "extraordinarily unique" to Butler County. Executive Committees themselves aren't rare. In fact, almost every county political party in Ohio has them.

But if the new members would have been appointed, Butler County would have had the largest percentage of appointed members on an Executive Committee in the region, an Enquirer analysis shows.

The committee would have been about 44 percent the size of its Central Committee. In Clermont County, the Republican Executive Committee is about 10 percent the size of its Central Committee.

This alarmed some members because Butler County's GOP bylaws permit an Executive Committee up to 85 percent the size of its Central Committee.

Warren County GOP Chairman Ray Warrick told The Enquirer that goes against a resident's right to vote.

"It’s a shame that these things can be gamed so much that cronyism and politics take over," he said. "And then important things are being decided by an exclusive little club."

All members of Warren County's Central Committee automatically become a part of its Executive Committee, but appointed members make up about 33 percent of the size of its Central Committee. Warrick said no Executive Committee members are required to pay to become official members.

Alex Triantafilou, chairman of Hamilton County's Republican Party, said Executive Committee members are not required to pay for voting rights in Hamilton County. But he doesn't have a problem with Butler County's policy because it gives members "a little skin in the game."

"I serve on a number of nonprofit boards," he said. "And it is assumed in all of them that you will contribute financially."

When asked about Butler County's policy, the Ohio Republican Party made no objections to it. Brittany Warner, communications director for Ohio's GOP, told The Enquirer each county party in the state is an "autonomous entity" permitted to create their own bylaws.

"They can govern themselves however they see fit," she said.

Hall said the county has appointed Executive Committee members like this "for decades" and indicated he had no intention of changing the process.

Other Republican candidates running for the congressional seat include state Sen. Bill Beagle, Great Oaks teacher Eric Haemmerle and Lakota Board of Education member Todd Parnell.