BEST PRACTICES 101: 10 reasons why your County and State Republican Party should include Central Committee contact information on its website.

Is your County and State Republican Central Committee still living in the dark ages trying to maintain control and power through terribly misguided policies?

Why does the Ohio Republican State Central Committee Chairman refuse to put State and County Central Committee member contact information on the party’s website? Could you imagine if you had no way to connect with your State Senate and House representative? It boggles the mind and boggles common sense.

10 common sense reasons why your County and State Republican Party should include Central Committee member contact information on its website.

Reasons why your County and State Republican Central Committees should put the contact information (email and phone number) of those members that are elected or appointed to the committee on their website.

1. Transparency: Displaying the contact information of elected precinct members on the central committee's website promotes transparency and openness within the political party.

2. Accessibility: Making contact information accessible to party members and the general public allows for effective communication and engagement.

3. Accountability: When members of the central committee know that their contact information is easily accessible to party members and the public, they are more likely to be accountable for their actions and decisions.

4. Responsiveness: Providing phone numbers and email addresses allows party members and the public to reach out to central committee members for information or to voice their concerns or feedback.

5. Participation: Displaying contact information can encourage party members to participate in the political process, knowing they can easily reach out to their elected representatives.

6. Collaboration: Contact information can facilitate collaboration and communication between party members and central committee members, leading to more effective decision-making and outcomes.

7. Representation: Members of the central committee are representatives of the party, and displaying their contact information can help constituents communicate with their elected representatives.

8. Constituent services: Providing contact information can allow party members to seek help with political issues, whether voter registration or advocacy for particular policies.

9. Feedback: Members of the central committee can receive feedback from party members and the public, allowing them to better understand the needs and concerns of their constituents.

10. Building trust: Displaying contact information can build trust between party members and central committee members, creating a more collaborative and effective political environment.

There is no law in Ohio that prevents a County or State Central Committee from facilitating engagement with the public by sharing contact information. There is no case law, and there are no parliamentary authorities that support such a prohibition on the sharing of information.

Nothing prevents the Ohio Secretary of State from creating a platform to help share information - just like he does for all other public offices. Nothing prevents the Chairman of the State Central Committee, and nothing stops the Chairman of a local County Central Committee.

Additionally, this is not a good business practice, nor does it make any marketing sense for a party with a mission to grow and expand the organization, not to help facilitate constituent engagement. Market professionals will always stress the simplest and least cumbersome method to gain customer feedback and engagement. That engagement potentially leads to sales and good word of mouth. For political parties - that means more people registering with the party and more donations, volunteerism, and more brand ambassadors in more local communities.

If you are not facilitating discussions as a Republican leader - guess what? A multitude of liberal organizations and Democrats will gladly have those discussions.

Why political leadership may not want the public to interact fully with its membership.

1. Fear of losing control: Leadership may fear that allowing members to freely interact with the public could lead to losing control over the organization, as members may gain popularity and support among the public.

2. Secrecy and concealment: Leadership may want to conceal activities or practices from the public and may prefer to limit communication channels to reduce the risk of exposure to criticism.

3. Fear of exposure: leadership may fear that members interacting with the public could expose the organization's activities or practices, which could be considered unethical or corrupt by some, leading to legal or reputational repercussions.

4. Lack of accountability: Limiting interaction with the public can prevent members from being held accountable for their actions, which can help to maintain the status quo and enable unethical activities and corruption to continue unchecked.

5. Image control: Leadership may prioritize controlling the public image of the organization, and allowing members to interact fully with the public could lead to uncontrolled messaging or negative press, which could damage the organization's reputation or the leader's ego.

As we can see, there are no valid and ethical reasons to prevent public engagement. In fact, successful parties have a policy that, as a member, you must interact with your constituents….if not, you may receive a punishment from the chairman. The days of being elected and going to a central committee to just give your opinion and have no contact with the public - should be over. Unfortunately, this practice is alive and well in Ohio.

As a Central Committee member - if you are not demanding contact information (email and phone number) for members be put on the website - you are not doing your job to grow the party.