MAHONING COUNTY Republican Party runs advertisements seeking to fill committee positions

The Mahoning County Democratic Party chairman says the move 'sounds like desperation.'
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Wanted: Mahoning County Republican precinct committee members.
Qualifications: Doesn't matter if you're not a Republican, if you've never voted for a Republican or don't believe in any Republican principles, as long as you haven't voted in the past two Democratic primaries.
At the behest of Raymond L. Butler, the party's sixth vice chairman, the party recently placed an advertisement in the Buckeye Review informing people who live in precincts that do not have committee members that they could fill those positions immediately if interested.
"Even if people disagree with us, but they want to see change, we'd welcome you," said Butler, whose primary responsibility as sixth vice chairman is to recruit and train potential Republican candidates.
"They can be an independent or a Republican and if their precinct is vacant and they want to come aboard, God bless them. We'll welcome them with open arms."
Results: The ad is directly responsible for the party's appointing two precinct committee members in Youngstown, one a former committee member and the other a converted Democrat, Butler said. The party will continue to run the advertisement and hopes to eventually place it in The Vindicator, he said.
"We hope those joining us would subscribe to the principles of the party, but if they don't, that's fine," Butler said. "We're not a monolith. We're open to diverse and divergent views."
The only no-no is those who have voted in a Democratic primary the past two years, Butler said. Those people are considered Democrats and are not eligible, he said.
Democrats outnumber Republicans in Mahoning County by a 7-2 margin and own a near monopoly on elected officials in the county.
The party has about 100 vacant precinct committee positions, about 30 percent of all precinct spots in the county, Butler said.
Another opinion: David Ditzler, chairman of the Mahoning County Democratic Party, said the newspaper ad smacks of desperation by Republicans.
"That's pretty wild," he said. "It's humorous. It sounds like desperation. If people aren't getting involved because their beliefs aren't similar to the overall party, it seems counterproductive to ask them to get involved."
Butler disagrees with Ditzler's assessment.
"I don't know if you would call it desperation necessarily," he said. "It's more inspiration to get people involved in the community."
The newspaper ad shows that the local Republican Party is interested in attracting new members to its organization, Butler said.
Reason for approach: Party officials have recruited precinct committee members in the past through one-on-one contact, but the ad permits those who have not been approached to get involved, he said. This is the first time the party has used this tactic, he said.
"It says to people that we are actively soliciting your participation and we are actively asking you to become involved and take an active role in the community," Butler said.
"Even if you disagree with us and are an independent, if you want to see some changes, we need your ideas."
skolnick@vindy.com