Republican state party chair Dave Williams is suing local party leaders in two of Colorado’s most populous counties, opening a new front in the battle over the state GOP’s future.
The defendants are Nancy Pallozzi, who chairs the Jefferson County Republican Party, and Todd Watkins, a vice-chair of the El Paso County Republican Party.
The defendants have been trying to organize a vote among party members to remove Williams as chair, and have scheduled a meeting for July 27. They and other party members are upset that Williams used party money to support his own failed run for Congress; broke tradition by picking sides in Republican primaries; and oversaw the sending of hateful anti-LGBTQ messages during Pride month.
Williams and his allies are fighting back. They contend that the upcoming meeting for the removal vote is invalid. They have scheduled their own meeting for August, which they say is the only legitimate gathering. And now Williams’ lawsuit, filed on Thursday night in Arapahoe County, aims to blunt his critics’ attacks.
“The State Party has the right to govern its affairs according to our bylaws and we won’t allow rogue members to violate the rule of law and confuse other members with their illegal efforts, especially in a time we need to rally around President Trump to defeat radical Democrats,” read a text message to CPR News from Hope Scheppelman, the vice chairwoman for the Colorado GOP.
In the suit, Williams contends that Pallozzi and Watkins have misused party resources while on their campaign to oust him. The filing notes that Pallozzi sent an email calling for Williams’ resignation that “prominently” displayed the county party’s logo. (Pallozzi was censured by county party members for acting without permission.)
The lawsuit also accuses the defendants of supporting their cause by taking the names of party members from state party files. The lawsuit alleges that Watkins, in a mailing to party members, “represented himself as acting on behalf of the State GOP, and the El Paso GOP, despite a lack of authorization to do so.”
The lawsuit asks a judge to ban Pallozzi and Watkins from claiming that anything they’re doing, including the upcoming July 27 meeting and removal vote, is “official” party business. And it seeks to block them from using party email servers, phone numbers, logos, websites and databases.
“Accuracy of information in the current political climate is critical to a functional democracy and Petitioner [Colorado Republican Committee]’s requested injunction will serve to protect that accuracy,” the lawsuit states.
When reached by CPR News Friday morning, Pallozzi declined to comment because she had not yet been served the lawsuit, as did Watkins.
CPR’s Bente Birkeland contributed to this report.
