Will wonders never cease? The Maine Republican Party actually managed to do something right this past week.

No, it wasn’t anything about public policy, nor was it an election win. Instead, in what must be considered a galloping shock, the party actually decided to hold its own leadership accountable for their shortcomings by ousting incumbent Chair Demi Kouzounas and replacing her with former Assistant House Minority Leader Joel Stetkis.

You might be surprised to learn that Kouzounas has been state party chair for five years now. And Maine Republicans haven’t really won anything during that time. Over the course of her tenure, Gov. Janet Mills has been elected twice, Republicans lost control of the Maine Senate, they’ve lost the 2nd Congressional District three times, and they’ve failed to make any headway in the Maine House. Just about the only victory Republicans have chalked down in Maine recently was Sen. Susan Collins’ re-election, and the state party deserves little credit for that.

That’s not an impressive record. Yet, before the election last weekend, it seemed that Kouzounas would cruise to victory. That’s mainly because, while Kouzounas might not have been able to get any other Republicans elected, she’s shown a remarkable ability to preserve her own position. Over the years she’s been able to dissuade or defeat would-be challengers, filling the state committee with her own supporters instead of truly effective activists.

A change in leadership, while a good start, won’t be enough to fix things on its own. We can’t just replace one ineffective leader with another and hope for the best. With that in mind, here are a few tips for Stetkis and the new state party leadership going forward.

First and foremost, he would be wise to largely steer clear of policy, whether in the Legislature or through citizen initiatives.

In the past, party chairs have meddled in policy, and it’s only served to inflame tensions between the state party and legislative leadership. If conservative activists want to launch a citizen initiative campaign that’s perfectly fine, but they should largely do so on their own, raising their own money and gathering their own signatures. There are plenty of issues where conservatives could, and should, use the citizen initiative process, but they shouldn’t depend on the state party to do it. If a citizen initiative can’t make it to the ballot without the help of the party, it probably won’t end up passing in the end anyway. It’s better for both the citizen initiative process and the party itself if they stay clear of one another. It’s better for the referendum because it will be less likely to succeed if it’s seen as a partisan effort, and it’s better for the party because it takes too much time, energy and money away from winning elections.

The state party shouldn’t be wading into legislative debates, either.

It’s not up to them to make sure Republican legislators are conservative enough, nor that particular pieces of legislation succeed or fail. There are enough activist groups in Augusta and all over the state who track legislation, both professional and grassroots in nature, and legislators have plenty of chances to make their own voices heard. The state party has too much on its plate to worry about what’s going on under the dome on a day-to-day basis; let legislative leadership handle that.

It’s also vitally important that the state party stay neutral in intra-party squabbles.

Instead of making sure one faction or another controls the state committee or any other group, they need people who will be effective activists and get Republicans elected. It’s long past time for Maine Republicans to set aside pointless personal squabbles and focus on doing work, not on currying favor with the right people to maintain their positions.

Similarly, the state party needs to use its resources wisely and fairly based on where it can do the most good, not based on personal or ideological factors. That means staying out of primaries and spending money in competitive districts, regardless of how conservative the Republican nominee may be.

That will require a lot of discipline and focus, but it’s vitally necessary if the change in party leadership is to be a true reformation rather than a mere facelift. Maine Republicans don’t have the luxury of obsessing over internal fights; they need to put those aside and get to work.

If the new leadership can do these things, the state party – and the state as a whole – will be the better for it.

Jim Fossel, a conservative activist from Gardiner, worked for Sen. Susan Collins. He can be contacted at:
jwfossel@gmail.com
Twitter: @jimfossel