CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia Republican Executive Committee will have plenty to discuss at its summer meeting on Saturday.
With former Del. Elliott Pritt, R-Fayette, in federal custody amid charges of a sexual relationship with an underage girl, the committee is set to make a historic vote. According to committee secretary Tony Hodge, the West Virginia Republican Party has never voted to disavow a candidate. They’ll vote this weekend to do just that.
State Republican Party Chairman Josh Holstein reported 88 members have signed onto the petition to disavow Pritt. Holstein said on MetroNews “Midday” Thursday that there’s little doubt that Pritt will be removed from the party.
“That’s almost certainly going to occur on Saturday,” Holstein said. “In addition to that, we also intend to reach out to the State Election Commission and present them with that disavowing letter. We’ve got some avenues here to establish another candidate.”
The State Election Commission has already scheduled a meeting for next Friday to discuss potentially disqualifying Pritt from the November ballot. Pritt resigned from his seat in the House of Delegates on Monday but has not withdrawn his name from the ballot. He ran unopposed for the 50th District seat in the May primary.
Fayette County Republicans have sent a letter to the State Election Commission requesting Pritt’s disqualification. If Pritt were to resign of his own volition, the Republican Party would not be able to replace him on the ballot. The Fayette County Republican Executive Committee plans to review candidates to potentially appoint to replace Pritt during its meeting on Monday.
Holstein advised everyone to not get lost in the shuffle. He emphasized the importance of getting justice for the victim of Pritt’s alleged actions.
“What really matters here is not the politics,” Holstein said. “I think that’s maybe getting lost in the shuffle a little bit, and I wanted to reiterate that. No matter what the politics are, there’s a victim in this case, and there’s a perpetrator in this case. The perpetrator is being held responsible and needs to be held responsible.”
The victim didn’t deserve what happened to her, Holstein said.
“Whatever happens on our end, in terms of a candidate on the ballot, this is just something that we’ll have to deal with,” Holstein said. “Our main objective, and our main concern, is doing what’s right and helping the victim get the justice that they deserve.”
Closed Republican Primary bylaw adjustment
Holstein said the West Virginia Republican Party will also discuss a change to its bylaws regarding the closed Republican Primary. He said that he’s spoken to members of the committee and feels certain that the bylaw “will pass easily.” Holstein said something had to be done, as debate over whether the Primary Election should be closed has consumed meetings in recent years.
“This is an issue that’s very contentious, it’s very divided among the committee, and it has been for years,” Holstein said. “I’ve been on the state executive committee now for seven years. I can tell you, at least the last four (years), every meeting, there’s been a buildup to, ‘are we going to talk about this issue?’ or we’ve actually talked about the issue during the meeting.”
Continued division and discontent about the closed Republican Primary provides instability, Holstein said. He said especially in this year of an election, the Republican Party has to keep its focus on what truly matters — the elections.
Holstein said he wrote this bylaw amendment and will present it during Saturday’s meeting. He noted it would create continuity for poll workers, county clerks, and the public in general; ensuring that it doesn’t flip-flop each election cycle. He said no matter where you stand on the divisive issue, tabling the debate for once every four years is a good move.
“Essentially what it does is, it would say that this issue can only be discussed on the summer meeting proceeding of presidential years,” Holstein said. “So, it would be in order in one meeting, every four-year cycle. That way, we don’t have to deal with this, there’s no speculation of what we’re doing.”