Eugene Craig Running For MDGOP 3rd Vice-Chair

Eugene Craig, a member of the Baltimore County Central Committee, is running for 3rd vice-chair of the State Central Committee. I am unaware of anyone else running for the seat, but he should win regardless. I spoke with Mr. Craig a few days ago about his run.

(Full disclosure: I've previously told Eugene that I’d support him in almost any race because I think he’s a good leader for the Republican Party. I did vote against him for his Clerk of the Court race because he lacks a legal background and the position is legal administration.)

Craig’s vision is to make the Republican Party competitive in areas where it has been entirely absent. He specifically named Baltimore City, Western Baltimore County and the City of Frederick as areas of specific concern. He also seeks to flip a Congressional seat beyond MD-6.

Craig has a plan to make this happen as well. His goal is to build party structures in local communities to build relationships with local organizations, businesses, and individuals outside of the election season. For too long our party has shown up the week prior to an election, asked for votes, and cut out, and that is what Craig seeks to change - the perfunctory “We have put in an appearance but who cares” attitude that many in our party display.

During his campaign for Court Clerk he visited dozens of precincts across the county, and many of the precincts expressed shock at having a Republican actually show up for once. He spoke spoke about the lack even of yard signs at the precinct sites, and how that needs to change. That’s where he plans to begin to build those party outreach organizations. HIs plan is reminiscent of Howard Dean’s successful “50-State Strategy” that gave Democrats 60 Senate seats and a House majority.

Most importantly, Craig rejects the “50% +1” gamesmanship that characterizes the current mindset among many in our party. As he put it:
“We have an obligation to go after every vote.”