As the Tennessean wrote:
“The Tennessee GOP has taken a major step toward eliminating three congressional candidates from the ballot in the Fifth District, including one Trump-endorsed candidate who angered state political insiders.”
Lee and Ortagus made some objections, but they ultimately accepted the committee’s ruling. Robby Starbuck is the single candidate who has chosen to resist.
In preparation for possible litigation, Harmeet Dhillon, Starbuck’s attorney, sent a preservation notice to the Tennessee GOP’s State Executive Committee (SEC) on behalf of the plaintiff.
“The same 24 hours when they removed me from the ballot, the SEC accepted and amended one congressional hopeful who didn’t have three out of the last four primaries and only a few vouching letters,” Starbuck added.
“That’s all. It’s a congressional election in the United States. So it’s simply the same office but with different expectations for him.”
The secret plans of a select few who voted to get rid of Starbuck were also leaked, and it appears that their views do not reflect the sentiments of GOP members throughout the state.
“So, a tape got out. NBC got it. They requested my comments on it, and one of the things that caught my attention was when one of the people in the Davidson GOP remarked to an SEC representative, ‘Look, Robby has accomplished more for the GOP than probably anyone.”
Starbuck has not lived in Tennessee long enough to have voted in three of the last four statewide primaries, which is one of the requirements for inclusion on the Republican Party primary ballot in Tennessee. But, candidates who cannot fulfill that criteria may show their “bona fide” status by providing vouching letters from local party officials or officials of affiliated organizations such as Young Republicans or Republican Women Federated, according to the rules.
Despite all of the efforts by Democrats and Republicans to influence the midterm election’s outcome, both parties will be hit by a rude awakening soon.
