Nancy Lord
Candidate Questionnaire

1.  In the past two years, what would you consider to have been the top three challenges for the Salt Lake County Republican Party?

1. Developing greater integrity within the Party and it’s processes through expecting leaders to adhere to properly adopted rules –creating greater openness, accessibility and accountability to the grassroots people.
    
2. Grappling with the issues regarding how delegates are selected, and particularly the issue of “automatic” or “appointed” delegates, and
    
3. Issues regarding the power to remove delegates or precinct officers from their elected positions 
   (Should it be the Executive Committee, or the Central Committee, that has that power? Should there be specific prohibitions against such things as publicly endorsing a Democrat, or can a delegate or precinct officer be removed based on a general “not fulfilling the purposes of the Party” reason (as in the case of the recent purge of delegates and precinct officers who endorsed Randy Horiuchi)?

2. In your opinion, what will be the top three concerns facing the party in the next two years?

The issues above have not been completely resolved, but the following additional concerns come to mind:

1. The County Party helping Republican candidates for public office more fully than in the past, not only with money but also with name lists and volunteers. (Some candidates say they received NO help from the County Party during their 2002 general election, and feel they lost their races as a result.)
    
2. Making the effort to educate the grassroots Party members better in how to participate in the meetings and processes within the Party, which would empower them to better fulfill their duties.
    
3. Unifying the Party by engendering trust, respect and participation from the Officers down to the grassroots. The climate of any organization is created and exemplified by it’s leaders.

3. Do you believe that you sufficiently understand the make-up and operation of the party’s conventions, Central Committee and Executive Committee to do the job you are seeking? Why?

Yes; I have served on the Central Committee as a Precinct Chair for the past seven (7) years, and before that as a Precinct Vice Chair. I have also served on the Executive Committee for three (3) of the past seven (7) years, first as a Region Chair and later as the County Party Treasurer. I have been either a county or state delegate almost every election cycle for the past 25 years (since I was 18). However, being a good leader includes involving many people with particular experience or talents who can help make these meetings successful. I encourage opening up Officer-appointed committees in the Party to all interested persons (which has not been done during the last two years).

4.  Do you believe that you sufficiently understand the procedural and governing documents of the party? Why?

Yes; I have studied them for the past five years whenever procedural questions have arisen. I usually carry a copy of the National, State and County Party rules with me to meetings. Party Officers must have a working knowledge of our governing documents and refer to, respect and uphold them when issues arise. An Officer doesn’t need to memorize them, but it is important to be the kind of leader that refers to the rules often, admits when he or she makes a mistake, and rectifies it as quickly as possible.

Also, Officers should be more strict about holding themselves to the rules, but more forgiving of grassroots volunteers who have not been given adequate notice of those rules. I have proposed many improvements to our governing documents, some of which have been adopted, including a Standing Rule (while I served as Rules Committee Chair) that created an open, predictable method for filling State Central Committee vacancies. This method has been in use for almost four years now, and has eliminated guesswork and political wrangling and favoritism in filling these positions.

5. What special skills or experience do you possess that qualifies you for the office that you seek?

I have an intense desire to insure that the Party processes are fair, open and above board; encourage maximum participation; and help the delegates/members to understand what’s happening. This is especially important for the Secretary, who carries out the job of keeping records and distributing information. My extensive experience in both the County and State Party leadership is a plus because there won’t be any wasted time learning my duties.

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Republicans for Civil and Informed Participation
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