Chairwoman Amy Carnevale’s One Year Update

 

MassGOP’s Financial and Political Revival 

In 2023, MassGOP returned to the WIN column, playing a crucial role in securing a victory for Senator Peter Durant in his special election. The Party invested $30,000 in the race, encouraged additional donor support and brought the RNC to the campaign with boots on the ground. This marks the first time our party has flipped a senate seat in seven years. We’re determined to maintain this momentum into 2024. First on our agenda is the special election to fill Senator Durant’s vacant representative seat on March 5th. With the Democrats failing to field a candidate, we can confidently say that the MassGOP is poised to go 2-0 in our first two special elections under our new Chair.

 

As we close the books on 2023, we’re excited to announce that the party raised approximately $770,000. This is a huge number. Raising money is never easy, especially during an off-year of the election cycle when the party does not have an elected statewide or federal official. Historically, the best comparison would be to 2007. After Governor Romney stepped down, the party was only able to raise approximately $494,000. We outperformed this benchmark, largely through the hard work of our event hosts, donors, and all of you.

 

On the expense side of the equation, the party minimized our total spending while also paying down $200,000 of the inherited debt from previous leadership. We kept our staff to a bare minimum and the Party Chair served without pay in 2023. Many local vendors had been left with unpaid bills following the 2022 cycle. We were pleased to finally pay back our local vendors who support the work of the party and provided important services in support of candidates although the Party remains in dispute with one vendor. As Chair, I made a commitment to steer the financial ship in the right direction, and I’m happy to report that as we begin 2024, we’re on the right track.

 

Due to compliance issues and misreporting with FEC and OCPF during the 2022 cycle, the new administration contracted Red Curve to oversee compliance and reporting.  As we reported early last year, OCPF identified $300,000 in misreporting in the 2022 cycle, and we are continuing to work through those issues. Similarly, we entered a formal dispute resolution process with the FEC over 2022 reporting issues. Our attorneys were able to negotiate the fine for this misreporting down to $6,450 while avoiding a full FEC audit of the committee. Additionally, the Party incurred a fine of $15,000 by the Attorney General for alleged campaign finance violations from the 2022 cycle, and this fine has been paid in full. Candidate recruitment and training are ongoing, with our next training scheduled for Saturday, February 24th at the Kowloon. We eagerly anticipate continuing our winning streak straight through to November. As a reminder, candidate recruitment starts with all of you. We encourage you to support recruitment in your towns, cities and districts.

 

We have successfully defended the right of the Party to have candidates of our choice on the primary ballot. We won a legal challenge before the State Ballot Law Commission that would have removed Donald Trump from the primary ballot, and we won the first appeal as well. From a communications standpoint, the MassGOP has reinserted itself in the political discussion in a positive way. Our first ever Response to the State of the Commonwealth, delivered by Senator Peter Durant, was a major success. Quotes from our elected officials and party leadership have been consistently featured in all local major media outlets from Print to TV. We have Democrats on their heels as we have taken control of the narrative and are forcing them to acknowledge their own bad policies.

 

Making Moves

We’re shipping out to Boston! The MassGOP is excited to announce that we’re moving our party headquarters to Merrimac Street. This location is conveniently located near North Station with many public transportation options nearby. The move is paramount to our continued growth and connectivity to the heartbeat of the Massachusetts government where we can be on top of the many failed policies coming out of the Healey Administration and Beacon Hill. At the same time, we are taking steps to re-launch a Victory program that will allow the MassGOP to have a physical presence in the critically important parts of the state where our candidates and grassroots volunteers supporting those campaigns are located. These locations will be based on candidate recruitment and fundraising. With the new Boston location comes opportunities to hire interns, connect with elected officials, and promote conservative values from the epicenter of the state’s media apparatus. This move signifies that the Republican Party is back in the fight. Please let us know if you know someone who would like to volunteer or intern.

 

Success in 2024

2024 is an incredibly important year, and there will be many local, state, and federal elections that the party will need to help. Presidential election years are always more difficult for Republicans, and 2024 will be no exception but we are right on the policies and momentum is on our side. On the state level, our goals are simple: protect our incumbents and support as many challengers as possible to restore balance to Massachusetts. On the federal level, we look forward to supporting the Party’s nominee against Senator Warren, and are in conversation with other potential Congressional candidates.

 

The MassGOP finds itself in the strongest position we’ve seen in years. We’re amassing substantial funds, dominating in special elections, revitalizing ties with elected representatives, changing the public narrative on multiple issues, and charging into 2024 with a clear aim: victory. Now is the time for us to come together as a party and support one another. If we move cohesively and continue to build on our momentum, we’re confident that we’ll take 2024 by storm.

 

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