Republican activists will vote this weekend on whether to call for the state party to create a conflict of interest policy that would ban members of the executive committee from advocating for or representing “the interests of any competing organization.”
The nonbinding resolution proposes a series of restrictions for executive committee members, including bans on sharing sensitive party information with a competing organization or unlawfully coordinating with another group.
The proposal comes as some in the party have had conflicts with Turning Point USA, which has been running a turnout operation in Wisconsin. The national group also has declared its intentions to recruit “genuine conservatives” to the Republican National Committee. Part of that aim is filing other party positions such as state chair, which in Wisconsin is elected by the state executive committee, along with the national committeeman and committeewoman positions from each state.
The party earlier this year considered a constitutional amendment that would’ve barred paid employees of advocacy groups from serving on its executive committee, which includes party officials responsible for electing the state chair. That drew protests from those associated with the pro-Donald Trump group Turning Point and was dropped.
Milwaukee County GOP Chair Hilario Deleon was critical of the effort to amend the party constitution before it was dropped and knocked the conflict of interest proposal. He wrote in a text message to WisPolitics it reflects a broader failure on the part of the party in terms of leadership, fundraising and strategic planning ahead of the 2026 elections. He called the conflict of interest proposal an attempt to “deflect responsibility for these shortcomings.”
“It would be far more effective to collaborate with aligned groups than to alienate them, after all the Democrats have been doing it for years,” he wrote. “At the end of the day we are all working towards the same goal whether people realize that or not.”
The proposal on tomorrow’s agenda includes a preamble declaring “any perception that RPW State Executive Committee Members are acting in a manner that benefits competing organizations (such as a 501(c)4) or personal interests rather than the interests of RPW undermines this trust.”
It lists seven key principles if the party implements a conflict of interest policy. That includes:
- Requiring executive committee members to disclose any financial interest in a competing organization that creates a conflict of interest.
- Recusal for executive committee members who have a conflict of interest.
- Requiring executive committee members to protect sensitive party information and refraining from using it to benefit a competing organization.
- Barring executive committee members from unlawfully coordinating with a competing organization.
- Barring executive committee members from advocating for a competing organization.
- Creating consequences for unethical behavior, including censure, suspension or removal from the executive committee.
- Creating a formal process for party members to file complaints for alleged violations of the proposed policy.
The resolution is among a host of issues party activists will vote on tomorrow.
Other resolutions to be taken up include:
- Opposing Monday processing of absentee ballots, same-day registration and drop boxes.
- Calling for enforcement of an 1849 law that had been interpreted as banning abortions except to save the life of the mother.
- Demanding K-12 schools that receive state funding be banned from teaching about “transgenderism.”
- Opposing birthright citizenship.
- Calling for the Wisconsin Constitution to be amended to bar the state Supreme Court and other state courts from redrawing legislative maps, and the Legislature should only have that power.
Some party activists have expressed dissatisfaction with state GOP leadership, particularly after this spring’s state Supreme Court win by liberal Susan Crawford. But there are no resolutions mentioning party leaders on the list prepared for party activists.
