On Wednesday, a letter appeared from John Grenci, candidate for delegate to the Republican convention. John’s letter had inaccurate information which I must correct.

Since I served as secretary of this Feb. 29 meeting, I went to my minutes for information. The Butler Eagle also covered the meeting, and you can read that account in the archives.

First, John’s letter stated that there were fewer than 50 people in attendance at the Butler County Republican Committee endorsement meeting. There were more than 50 committee members who voted since we needed a quorum.

Candidates, their surrogates, and their supporters were also there, and I would conservatively estimate the attendance at 70 to 75. John commented that some “sitting” politicians wore stickers for candidates. He did not mention that some guests wore T-shirts or stickers supporting their preferred candidates.

Actually, Ryan Covert’s supporters wore them. Others wore campaign stickers for other candidates. This was, after all, a political event. The First Amendment belongs to all of us — candidates, elected officials, committee people, everyone!

Every candidate who was present was permitted to speak. Note that Ryan Covert, Jesse Vodvarka, and Scott Jaillet were given an opportunity to speak in a way not provided by the bylaws.

Bylaws state that a committee member must make a motion to put the candidate’s name up for consideration for endorsement. That motion must be seconded by a committee member.

Covert, Vodvarka, and Jaillet did not have a committee member ready to make that motion to be considered for endorsement. In a magnanimous effort, our external vice-chair, Trish Lindsay, made the motion for each of them. I seconded the motion in each case. We went the extra mile to make sure every candidate could be heard.

The endorsement process is a new action taken by the committee, but it does not and should not preclude anyone from running.

The endorsement process is simply a way for committee members to express their opinions of which candidate is the best qualified and has the best chance to win the election. Endorsement does not guarantee success, but it can give committee members, who often best know the candidates, an opportunity to be heard. Voters should consider it as part of their decision-making toolbox.

And, it can be important since the endorsement depends on the experiences of a number of people, not just one person’s interpretation or misinterpretation of the facts.

Pat Stirling, secretary, Butler County Republican Committee, Harmony