Acting Hamilton County Chair Laura Campbell makes her case for dismissing 70 precinct committeemen to State Chair Jeff Cardwell

1. January 24, 2016
VIA E-mail
Jeff Cardwell, Chairman
Indiana Republican Party
101 W. Ohio Street, Suite 2200
Indianapolis, IN 46204
jcardwell@indiana.gop
Dear Jeff,
There has been a lot of misinformation being thrown around regarding what is going on in Hamilton
County, and the actions I have taken as acting Chairman ahead of Saturday’s caucus. I want to set the
record straight so that you know the facts, and to ensure that we protect the morale of those precinct
and vice precinct committeemen who are truly the backbone of our County and State Party.
FACTS AND BACKGROUND
On the evening of Thursday, December 17, 2015, former Hamilton County GOP Chairman Pete Emigh
informed me that he intended to resign. This came as a surprise to me, as we had just recently discussed
plans for 2016 and the re-election of Governor Pence. Emigh said that he intended to have the caucus on
January 5, 2016, and I wasn’t sure that I would be able to prepare for the caucus since I always visit my
family in Florida during the last week of December. Emigh told me that Pete Peterson, our treasurer, was
interested in running, and that Peterson and I should talk. Emigh said he and I should talk further about
his resignation the next day, Friday, December 18, 2015.
I understood that when a Chairman resigns, the Vice Chairman becomes acting Chairman and has 30 days
to call a caucus to replace the Chairman. I checked state party rules to confirm that those were indeed
the rules. I was suspicious of Emigh wanting to call the caucus so quickly after the holidays, and on the
first day of the legislative session. I tried calling Emigh the next day, but did not receive a response.
On Saturday evening, Emigh and I were both at an event. Someone at the event told me that Emigh had
appointed “a lot” of Precinct Committeemen and Vice Committeemen before he resigned. Peterson was
at the event as well, and we talked about meeting to discuss the chairman’s caucus.
On Sunday, December 20, Emigh and I spoke a second time. I told him that I was interested in running for
Chairman, and asked for the precinct list. When I looked over the list, I was shocked to see that about 71
people (the “Emigh Appointments”) had been appointed to the list on 11/29/2015. Upon a review of the
names of those 71, it became clear to me that Emigh was attempting to stack the deck to ensure Peterson
would win. The 71 that were appointed included Peterson’s daughter, his mortgage broker who co-signed
on his home loan, vendors who do business with Fishers, Fishers city employees, and a host of others who
would clearly vote for Peterson. Only a few of the Emigh appointees have ever had anything to do with
Hamilton County Republican politics.
I immediately contacted Kim Good, our central committee secretary, who had no idea that Emigh was
resigning and had not received notice of any of the Emigh appointees mentioned above as the rules

2. require. At this point I knew that as acting Chairman, I had 30 days to hold the caucus and did not have
to do it on January 5 as Emigh and Peterson wanted.
Peterson and I agreed to meet on December 22nd
to talk about the caucus. When we met, I told him that
that I was considering running for Chairman, and would call him when I had made my decision. After
Christmas, I called Peterson to let him know that I was going to run for Chairman in the caucus.
The Emigh Appointments were not in compliance with our rules, done for an improper purpose, and will
disenfranchise the hundreds of elected precinct and vice precinct committeemen who actually do work
on behalf of our Party and make Hamilton County the stalwart of Republican Politics that it has become.
ARGUMENT
1. The 71 Emigh Appointments did not comply with State Party Rules
Rule 3-21, states that the State Party Secretary and the County Party Secretary shall be notified of
appointments under Rule 3-19 (the Rule Emigh used). Additionally, Rule 2-15, the County Chairman shall
appoint a vice-precinct committeeman for the precinct by certifying the appointment to the State and
County Secretary and shall notify the appointee and the precinct committeeman in writing on the form
prescribed by the State Committee. Neither of these notifications were made. Kim Good is the County
Secretary and she will attest that she never received notice. Peterson has argued that by notifying the
“County Party” that he essentially notified Kim. But of course that is not what the rule says and
interpreting it that way would be ridiculous. That would mean Emigh could have notified Peterson (then
Treasurer) of the appointments which was essentially notice to Kim or Emigh could notify Dan Dumezich,
State Party Treasurer, or any employee and that would satisfy notice to Barbara McClellan, State Party
Secretary. That cannot be the case.
Also, my team and I have talked with some of the 71 who were appointed by Emigh before he resigned,
and a large number of them have no idea they are a precinct or vice precinct committeeman and have
had no affiliation with the County Party ever. The drafters of the Rules of the Indiana Republican State
Committee believed it imperative when using the words “shall” for the notice requirement. The proper
notices, under the Rules of the Indiana Republican State Committee, were not made and therefore, even
if I had not removed these people, their appointments were not valid to begin with.
2. Removal of the 71 Emigh Appointments was within my authority as the acting Chairman
According to Rule 3-20. The individual appointed under Rule 3-19 serves for the term specified in Rule 2-
9 (for appointed precinct committeemen) or Rule 2-16 (for vice-committeemen) and is subject to earlier
removal at the pleasure of the County Chairman. If Emigh had the power to appointment them, then I
had the power to remove them. Emigh and Peterson cannot control the Party when they are in power;
and then also control it when they are not in power. This is clear by Rule 3-31, which states that a person
serving as acting County Chairman under Rule 3-30 has the same authority and duties as the individual
who previously served as Chairman.

3. Rule 3-4 states that the County Committee is composed of the precinct committeemen and the precinct
vice-committeemen of the election precincts of the county. It is imperative that these lists are kept current
by the County Chairman or the County Secretary pursuant to Rule 3-21. Only those whose names appear
on the official list maintained by the State Committee Secretary thirty (30) days prior to an office or ballot
vacancy shall be eligible to participate in a caucus.
The above rules are construed together to mean that a person has to be a member of the County
Committee thirty days before the vacancy AND, a member at the time of the caucus in order to
participate. And in order to be a member of the County Committee, the person has to be a precinct or
vice committeeman.
Although rule 3-4 requires that a person must have been a precinct or vice committeeman at least thirty
days before the vacancy, there still remains the requirement that the person has to be a PC or vice at the
time of the caucus. In order words, there are two requirements: (1) the person must have been a PC or
vice thirty days before the vacancy; and (2) the person must be a PC or vice at the time of the caucus.
Any other interpretation would produce absurd results. For example, if a PC or vice resigns, moves out of
county, or moves out of state during the thirty-day period before the vacancy, that person does not have
the right to vote in the caucus because he or she is no longer a member of the county committee, even
though that person’s name was on the list. The right to vote for county chairman is not simply determined
by a person’s name on the list thirty days beforehand.
As Acting Chairman, I had the right to remove appointed PC‘s or vices. I only removed the last-minute
appointments. These removals have to be treated the same as resignations or as people who have moved
out of county. The removals were allowed under the rules. The removals are no longer members of the
County Committee and cannot vote at the caucus.
Since the precinct list is required to be kept current by the County Chairman or the County Secretary, the
Hamilton County list was not properly submitted or maintained, given that Kim Good had not been
involved in the process of maintaining the list and did not have a copy of it, until I became Acting Chairman,
and emailed the list to her in January.When I became Acting Chairman, I did not intend to recognize this
Precinct List as the final list for the Chairman’s caucus, as this email chain shows:

4. I removed the Precinct Committeemen and Vice Committeemen who were appointed on 11/29/2015,
along with a letter which follows:
As you can see, I followed the rules exactly when I issued these removals. I removed these people, not
because they are Petersen supporters, but because they were appointed with the sole intent of diluting
the vote and ensuring a Peterson victory. It was within my authority to do so. I know Emigh and
Peterson don’t like it, but they chose this course of action when they tried to improperly influence the
outcome of the caucus.
I have heard them argue that I am trying to “stack the deck” with my supporters. But I have not appointed
a single person. All I have done is remove these fraudulent appointments which were made on the eve
of Emigh’s resignation with the clear intention of ensuring his hand-picked successor, Peterson, had no
real competition in this caucus.
Dear
This letter is to notify you that in accordance with State Party Rule 3-20, you have
been removed as a precinct or vice precinct committeeman. This decision is effective
immediately.
As you may know, the previous Chairman made approximately seventy (70) of these
appointments just prior to his resignation in an attempt to influence to upcoming caucus. I
strongly believe that a county chairman should be elected by those who have served our
party and those who have a sincere desire to do so – and not for the sole purpose of voting in
a caucus. To do otherwise is to minimize and diminish the vital role played by our existing
dedicated precinct committeemen and vice committeemen.
Consistent with this sentiment, I feel that is imperative to reverse the decision of my
predecessor and to create a level playing field for those who serve. As such I have submitted
the paperwork for your removal as a current precinct committeeman or vice precinct
committeeman. As a result of this submission to the State Party, the official roster for the
caucus received from the State Party does not include your name.
After the caucus has concluded, I encourage you to run for precinct committeeman,
to request an appointment to a vacancy near you, or to serve the party in another capacity. If
you have a sincere interest in serving our great party organization, I promise you that I will
welcome your involvement.
Sincerely,
Laura D. Campbell

5. 3. If the 71 Emigh Appointments are not removed, elected precinct and vice precinct
committeemen will be disenfranchised and Hamilton County will suffer in 2016
Setting the rules aside, there is more at stake here. The Emigh Appointments are virtually all people who
have little to no involvement in Hamilton County Republican politics. They have never manned a phone
bank, knocked on a door, or put up a yard sign. They will not help us get out the vote in 2016. On the
other hand, we have hundreds of precinct and vice precinct committeemen who were elected. These
people make up the backbone of our party. They are the ones who make calls, knock on doors, get out
the vote, and fill election boards. I have heard from almost all of them – and they are very upset by what
they have learned Emigh and Peterson were trying to do to them.
Specifically, they are upset that for all they do for the Party, Emigh and Peterson are trying to deprive
them of one of the few perks of their job – electing a new County Party Chairman. They believe they are
being disenfranchised and that their votes are being “watered down” in order for a hand-picked chairman
can be shoved down their throat. The threat they feel was increased when many of them received notice
that Peterson had a criminal history which included crimes of dishonesty and his business and personal
bankruptcies. He has admitted these accusations are true. Many of them have expressed relief that this
issue is being referred to State Party because they believe that the State Party will have their back and do
what is right by removing the Emigh Appointments.
If the Emigh Appointments remain, these elected precinct and vice precinct committeemen have
expressed that State Party is sending a clear sign that they are only needed for the grassroots work during
election season and one of the few privileges afforded them, to elected their Chairman, is taken away
from them by diluting their vote. By upholding these removals, State Party would be trading 71 people
with no affiliation to the Party for hundreds of people who make Hamilton County the ultimate firewall
for Governor Pence and every other Republican candidate in 2016.
There is a lot of “white noise” associated with that is going on right now. But the loudest voices are not
always the ones who are leading in the right direction. The elected precinct and vice precinct
committeemen should not be discounted. These Republican foot soldiers deserve to be protected and,
while often silent, they are the ones who will deliver us electoral wins in November for Governor Pence
and the other statewide candidates. These folks are waiting to see if State Party backs them up or not. I
ask that you do what is right, what the rules require, and uphold these removals to ensure a fair election.
Sincerely,
Laura
Laura D. Campbell
Acting Hamilton County Chairman