Lewiston Republican Chair To Resign Over Conflict In Principles

Lewiston City Republican chairman Tim Lajoie, who was also a candidate for the Legislature in District #74, has announced he will be resigning his post in Lewiston at the next meeting. Citing the oligarchy that the party leadership has become, he states that there is a clear conflict between his principles and what the leadership in both Maine and National stands for.

As a Republican candidate against Democratic incumbent Peggy Rotundo, Undercover Porcupine documented his campaign over a couple of articles. As noted in “The Lajoie Campaign Standard”, he ran on a unique platform that was beyond partisan politics and negative campaigning. Although open about the fact he was a Republican, he didn’t rely on it. He also did not use his opponent’s disagreements to his advantage. The solid campaign was documented further in “The High Road In Politics: Principles Over Party.”

Given these known facts about Lajoie, it is not surprising to hear he will be stepping down and standing on his principles. It is still a sad day for grassroots Republicans to see this happen, as the Party is losing an incredible leader. This is a trend that has been occurring since the summer and will continue on until the leadership sees a change in philosophy and figureheads.

In a Facebook post announcing the coming resignation, Lajoie explains his thought process behind why he will be stepping down:

In short, the Republican Party has a credibility problem. That is the party’s fault. They have refused to change, refused to listen, and refused to convince the “man on the street” that they relate to them. How can they when they stifle the grassroots? For the last two years conservatives have tried to right the party’s direction…both state-wide and nationally…and bring it more in line with Ronald Reagan, the last strong Republican leader. The party leadership fought the whole time to suppress it. For months the conservatives in the party warned that Mitt Romney would not win, could not win…and he didn’t. I supported him because I thought he was the best chance to beat President Obama, even if I believed he was not the best candidate. I am through supporting a party that is self-serving and refuses to give a voice to those who support it with their time, treasure, talents, and votes.

Lajoie also notes “the Republican Party has become the same oligarchy that I hate so much in government; the righteous hatred of government control that compelled me to run” in the same post. Explaining that the party is now driven by careerism and run by self-serving career politicians, he also correctly observes that this political path is void of principles. Because of the absence of values that Lajoie and many other grassroots Republicans share, he feels that in good conscience, he can no longer remain in his position or support a party that has abandoned his values. Lajoie refers to Ronald Reagan as the last strong conservative leader and states the party is no longer interested in following his example. It was former President Reagan who responded to his departure from the Democratic Party by saying, “I didn’t leave the Democratic Party. It left me.” Tim Lajoie and others have not left the Republican Party. The Republican Party has left them.

Chris Dixon

About Chris Dixon

Chris Dixon is a libertarian-leaning writer and managing editor for The Liberty Conservative. In addition to his political writing, he also covers baseball for Cleat Geeks and enjoys writing on a number of other topics ranging on Medium.