Erling George Haugland, known as Curly Haugland, is an American politician and businessman. He has served as the Republican National Committeeman for North Dakota since 1999. Haugland was elected chairman of the North Dakota Republican Party in 1999; he served one term and has since been elected to three four-year terms as committeeman.[1][2]
Curly Haugland | |
|---|---|
| Born | Erling George Haugland |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | Republican National Committeeman for North Dakota Member of RNC Rules Committee |
Since 2009 Haugland has been a member of the RNC Rules Committee.[2] He previously served as an advisory board member for the Bank of North Dakota (1993–2000) and as Commissioner of the Northern Great Plains Rural Development Commission (1994–1996).[2]
2008 campaign for chairman of the Republican National Committee
editIn 2008 Haugland set up an unsuccessful run for chairman of the Republican National Committee, in part because he was against a proposal that would allow an outsider to hold the position.[1] Haugland was one of a group of RNC members who fought then-U.S. President George W. Bush’s move to install U.S. Senator Mel Martinez as the RNC chairman. Some members of the committee disliked what they said was Martinez's lenient stance on illegal immigration.[3] Haugland argued that the committee's rules barred Martinez from serving as chairman because he was not one of its 168 members.[1] The dispute ended in a compromise with Kentucky banker Mike Duncan elected chairman, and Martinez given the title of "general chairman," a position not replaced when Martinez stepped down after only ten months in October 2007.[1]
2016 Republican Party presidential primary election
editAs a member of the Republican Party's Rules Committee, throughout the party's 2016 presidential nominating process, Haugland has explained that it is the party's delegates, and not primary voters, who ultimately decide the party's nominee.[4] Haugland explained: "The media has created the perception that the voters will decide the nomination...Political parties choose their nominee, not the general public, contrary to popular belief."[5]
In an April 2016 interview on NPR, Haugland said primary votes were irrelevant to a party's nomination process since the nomination for president is dependent solely on a simple majority of the vote of the permanently seated delegates to the national convention.[6]
In May 2016 Politico described Haugland as "the mainstream GOP’s last hope to deny Donald Trump the Republican nomination in Cleveland."[7]
In June 2016 Haugland and Sean Parnell co-authored a book, Unbound: The Conscience of a Republican Delegate.[8][9] The book, published by Delegates Unbound, argues that "delegates are not bound to vote for any particular candidate based on primary and caucus results, state party rules, or even state law."[10]
References
edit- ^ a b c d N.D. GOP activist might run for national chairman, Minot Daily News, April 14, 2008.
- ^ a b c Curly Haugland Archived 2016-05-12 at the Wayback Machine, Republican National Committee official website.
- ^ Bush backing for RNC chair doesn’t go over well, Seattle Times, November 15, 2006.
- ^ We choose the nominee, not the voters: Senior GOP official, CNBC, March 16, 2016.
- ^ RNC member: ‘Political parties choose their nominee, not the general public’, Washington Post, March 16, 2016.
- ^ "Delegates May Vote Their Conscience At GOP Convention, Delegate Says". NPR.org. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
- ^ Trickey, Eric (May 9, 2016). "The One Man Who Could Stop Donald Trump". Politico. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
- ^ LoBianco, Tom; Kopan, Tal (June 17, 2016). "RNC delegates launch 'Anybody but Trump' drive". CNN. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
- ^ Bash, Dana; Raju, Manu (June 17, 2016). "How the GOP could cut ties with Donald Trump". CNN. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
- ^ Livengood, Chad (June 17, 2016). "Two Mich. GOP delegates join new plot to dump Trump". The Detroit News. Retrieved 18 June 2016.