A group of conservative Republican activists has been questioning whether a Knox County mayoral candidate should appear on the Republican Primary ballot in May.
The Knox County Conservative Republicans asked the state Republican Party to remove Larsen Jay from the GOP primary, arguing his past campaign donations to Democrats such as Barack Obama and independents disqualify him as a “bona fide” Republican.
Local members of the GOP state executive committee met Tuesday night to hear a complaint questioning whether Jay could appear on the May primary ballot.
GOP state executive committee members addressed the complaint and dismissed it Tuesday night. Under the bylaws, a “Bona fide” candidate must have voted in three of the last four statewide Republican primaries. A candidate can still be challenged based upon support of Democrats either financially or otherwise, but state executive committee members from the local district, along with the state party chairman, Scott Golden, can review the relevant facts and context involving the Republican credentials of a candidate and grant a waiver in their collective discretion.
Before the meeting, Jay had criticized the move by a handful of conservative republicans as a desperate campaign tactic. Jay, a current at-large commissioner in Knox County, is one of three republicans on the May primary ballot in the race for mayor and appears to be the frontrunner.
Jay has rejected the claim that he is not sufficiently Republican. He’s running against Republicans Kim Frazier, a fellow county commissioner, and Knox County school board member Betsy Henderson. Jay says he is a lifelong Republican and has broad support within the party. “We’ve got the support of our Republican speaker of the house, our former Republican governor, and nearly a thousand Republican donors across Knox County,” Jay has pointed out.
In a letter sent to party leaders, the conservative group questioned Jay’s credibility as a Republican, citing a $1,000 campaign donation to former President Barack Obama in 2008. The letter also referenced a $250 donation Jay made in 2022 to an independent candidate, Dominique Oakley, running for the Knox County school board, who opposed Republican Steve Tripplet.
Jay responded by pointing to his own consistent support for Republican candidates, including a $500 donation in 2022 to a Republican, double the amount he gave to the independent candidate.
In reaction to the decision in his favor Tuesday night, Jay released the following statement:
“I appreciate the state party and members of the executive committee acting swiftly to dismiss the petition and to validate what we all know: this was a frivolous effort to disenfranchise voters and take their voice away. This is the sort of thing people do when they know their candidate can’t win at the ballot box. I look forward to continuing this campaign and to serving as the next Knox County Mayor.”
Steve Gill is editor and publisher of TriStar Daily.
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