Become a Precinct Committeeman/woman
At this time there is no announced date for a July, 2022 OCREC meeting.
Here in Orange County, the Republican Executive Committee (OCREC) is the official organization of the Republican Party. By law, there are currently 956 committeemen positions and 956 committeewomen positions, for a total of 1,912 total seats. Many people are surprised to hear that less than 15% of the positions in Orange County are actually filled. In other words more than 85% of the seats are open.
What does a committeeman/woman do? Check out this short video for an overview:
The Precinct Strategy.com Promotional Video 1 minute
If you are interested in joining OCREC there are a few steps to follow:
You must be a registered Republican in Orange County.
There must be an open position in your precinct (chances are there are open seats).
You must complete 3 forms:
Orange County Republican Executive Committee Membership Application
Candidate Oath - This form must be notarized. If you come to an OCREC meeting I will notarize it free of charge.
NOTE: This is Florida Department of State, Division of Elections form DS-DE 305CM. It was updated 4/20. The latest version is available on the DOE website Forms page.
Republican Party of Florida Loyalty Oath - This needs to be witnessed (I can do that too).
NOTE: This version of the form was updated 6.11.2022 and provided by the RPOF.
NOTE: These are the same forms found on the OCREC Membership Paperwork page
Attend an OCREC general meeting (at which time you can submit your membership paperwork originals) and then you will be eligible to attend the subsequent new member meeting.
Then you will be notified and can attend a new member meeting (training session) required by OCREC.
Then you will be up for election at the next OCREC meeting. Yes, you will be an elected official in Orange County. You must be present when new members are elected - this is typically late in the meeting, so please plan accordingly.
According to the OCREC Constitution: “Any member of Orange County Republican Executive Committee shall not be deemed a member until the candidate oath (pursuant to F.S. 99.021) has been signed and filed in the office of the Supervisor of Elections and the Republican Party loyalty oath (pursuant to Rule 9) has been filed with the Chairman of the Orange County Republican Executive Committee, who shall cause the original Party loyalty oath to be forwarded to the Republican Party of Florida within thirty (30) days.” The implication is that these documents need to be filed to activate your membership. Verify that these steps have been completed.
Jim Ford (jford1533@gmail.com) is the OCREC Membership Committee Chairman and is a great resource if you have questions.
You can attend OCREC meetings even if you are not a member. It’s a great way to see things for yourself.
OCREC meets monthly, with some breaks in the summer and the holidays. Committeemen/women are required to attend and can be removed after 3 consecutive unexcused absences.
I am happy to answer questions, please feel free to reach out.