Craig Campbell, chairman of the Douglas County Republicans, will chat at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 23, about the GOP caucuses on Feb. 9.

Moderator

Good afternoon, I’m Journal-World reporter George Diepenbrock moderator. Welcome back to our second chat about the Kansas caucuses. We covered the Democrats yesterday. This afternoon, Craig Campbell, chairman of the Douglas County Republicans, is in the News Center to take your questions about the GOP caucuses Feb. 9. Thanks for being here, Craig.

Craig Campbell

George, thanks for having me this afternoon.

Moderator

To start, can you give a summary of how the Republican caucuses will work at each caucus site?

Craig Campbell

Sure. We have a single site for Douglas County (South Jr. High at 2734 Louisiana). The caucus is scheduled to begin at 10:00am on Saturday, February 9th.

We will begin check-in at 9:00am and registered Republicans (as of January 25th) will be able to participate. The caucus will be called to order at 10:00am and each candidate will have the opportunity to have a representative speak for 10 minutes (or if there is no representative anyone can speak for 1 minute each with a maximum of 10 minutes per candidate. Once the speeches are concluded registration will be closed and we will begin the voting process by secret ballot. You may have until 11:00am to be registered but to be safe you should arrive by 10:00am.

Once the vote is completed the results will be tallied and announced. In addition to the Presidential voting we will have a number of local candidates on hand. This will allow people a great opportunity to meet them and get more information.

On registration, voters will want to bring a photo ID.

ec

Why do the democrat and republican caucuses operate differently?

Craig Campbell

The reason is that each party has the ability to determine their own rules. I like the way the Republican Party has chosedn because it allows you to support your chosen candidate and not be forced to have them eliminated because they didn’t reach an arbitrary vote percentage.

In addition, our caucus should go quicker because there will only be a single vote.

LogicMan

How long does a Douglas County caucus typically require? Thanks.

Craig Campbell

There probably isn’t an answer for a typical caucus but I think this one should be around 90n minutes or so. We had 7 candidates file (but Fred Thompson has now dropped out) so if we have 6 candidates at 10 minutes (1 hour) which would then give us around 30 minutes to complete the voting.

So you should be home in plenty of time for lunch.

Moderator

Do you know who will be representing each candidate in Lawrence?

Craig Campbell

I haven’t recveived a list yet (we may get one prior to the caucus) but the State GOP will do a drawing to determine the order. However, I have extended an invitation to the candidates themselves so we shall see how Super Tuesday shakes out because who know Kansas may be in a position to clinch the nomination.

senegal66025

Why isnt there a cacus site in Eudora? Why does all of Douglas County Republicans have to go to Lawrence to vote in the cacus?

Craig Campbell

We sweren’t sure on what type of turnout that we might have so we tried to get a location as centrailly located within the county as possible for those coming over from Eudora and up from Baldwin City.

In addition, the county party is covering the cost for the caucus location and we want to be as fiscally responsible as possible so we can provide the most support for our local candidates in November.

Moderator

Craig, is it true that registered Republicans can caucus at any site as long as it is in the congressional district where they live?

Craig Campbell

That is correct. In fact, we will have people coming up from Miami and Franklin counties. It may be possible to even participate if it is a different congressional district but if you plan to do that I would contact the State GOP at 785-234-3456 or www.ksgopcaucus.org.

Moderator

Also, do you have an estimate for how many people might attend at South Junior High? Are volunteers receiving any special training to staff the caucus sites?

Craig Campbell

It’s hard to say how many people may show up. There are a number of variables which include what happens in Florida and on Super Tuesday, what the weather is like, etc…

I have participated on a number of conference calls and will be in Topeka to get some additional training on Friday.

I am working with our volunteers to train them on the resgistration and voting process.

lawrencian

I have never attended a caucus before, do you have any tips for how to be prepared, other than reviewing info about the candidates?

Craig Campbell

Lawrencian, that is a good question.

I would just be familiar with the candidates especially if you are still undecided because you may have a chance to ask questions. I would also familiarize yourself on who your local representatives are so you can speak with them and possibly find a local candidate you would like to help get elected or re-elected.

AlexParker

Will I be bombarded by electioneering when I go to the caucus?

Craig Campbell

Bombarded? No. But you will have the opportunity to get information on local candidates. In my opinion it is great to have a Republican President and we have a tremendous opportunity to decide who that may be, but our goal is to see Republicans elected to State and County Offices and given the tremendous diversity in our local candidates there is one that will fit your ideological flavor.

smaines

How do you see these candidates refashioning themselves to appeal to Kansas voters? What must they focus on to prevail here?

Craig Campbell

I think that we have already re-fashioned themselves during the early primaries and caucuses. Candidates have seen what issues have resonated with voters and what hasn’t.

I think the 3 issues that Kansans will be most interested in:
1) What their plan and experise is in keeping the economy from slipping into a recession?
2) How will they manage the War on Terror and bring a successful conclusion to the War in Iraq?
3) What is their plan for dealing with the illegal immigration issue?

These are other issues but I think those are the main ones.

hbrummitt

How many people need to show up for a caucus for it to be deemed successful?

Craig Campbell

It is hard to say. I think the true success will be measured in what happens in November. We could have only 50 people show up, but if those 50 people were energized to see local republicans elected it would be a success. On the other hand, if we had 1000 people show up, vote and go home and not work to see local Republcans elected it would be a failure.

Moderator

Have you seen any polling or do you have an idea about who may be the favorite in Kansas at this point?

Craig Campbell

The only polling information I saw a few weeks ago had John McCain in front but not by a huge margin. This race has been very fluid, with momentum seeming to go up and down depending on the previous primary/caucus.

I see McCain, Romney and Huckabee being players while I think Rudy has a chance to be a major player dependent on his showing in Florida. It has been amazing what one state’s results have meant on a candidates viability and that will only increase as we near Super Tuesday.

Moderator

Who needs support in Kansas the most?

Craig Campbell

I think it would either be Huckabee or Romney. I think McCain is in it until the end or until someone clinches the nomination.

But the picture on who needs Kansas the most will be dependent on the results leading up to February 9th.

Moderator

Do you have a prediction about who could receive the most votes at the Douglas County site?

Craig Campbell

If I had to predict, I would say John McCain with Rudy being an alternative if he is able to win Florida and do reasonably well on Super Tuesday.

Moderator

Craig, those are all of the questions we have for today. Thank you again for taking the time to chat. Is there anything else important you would like to say about the Republican caucuses? Are any dates coming up that voters should pay attention to?

Craig Campbell

Thank you so much for having me. I just want to STRONGLY encourage all Republicans to come out on the 9th at 10:00am. This may be the greatest chance you will have to influence who our President will be so you don’t want to miss out. It also will give you a chance to meet candidates/elected officials face-to-face and see where they stand on the issues that are most important to you and your family.

Make sure you are registered as a Republican by this Friday, you can do that at the County Clerk’s office or on the Kansas Secretary of State’s website as well.

If anyone has any further questions on the caucus or how they can become more involved in the Douglas County Republican Party you can contact me at 423-5656.

Thanks again.