South Dakota runoff election spawns another reluctant ‘RINO’

Throughout my career in journalism, as an editorial writer and now as a columnist, I never seriously considered belonging to a political party. As an opinion writer, those political parties were subjects and sometimes targets but never any place I wanted to call home.

My voter registration as an independent was something I wore like a badge of honor. If I was registered as an independent, I figured I could take shots at either party without being accused of favoritism. Whenever the subject of my voter registration came up, I told people I subscribed to the Groucho Marx philosophy that I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.

That’s why it’s with a heavy heart and a certain degree of embarrassment that I confess that I am now a member of the Republican Party. It really wasn’t that tough to change my registration. It’s not like you have to get an invitation from the party in order to join or sign an oath pledging your loyalty. Just show up at the courthouse and fill out a form. I’ll admit there may have been some psychological trauma. I screwed up twice while filling out the form.

Of course my interest in joining the GOP is prompted by being able to vote in the Tuesday’s runoff for the Republican nomination for governor between Aberdeen businessman Toby Doeden and Gov. Larry Rhoden. Given South Dakota’s history of electing Republicans in statewide races, the winner of the runoff will likely be the state’s next governor.

As a newspaper editorial writer, a topic I returned to every two years was the Republican Party’s closed primary. It didn’t seem fair that, as a taxpayer, I got to pay for an election but not take part in it. After writing so many words about the need for an open primary, it seemed like it was time to lay down the pen, get off the sidelines and take action, no matter how disagreeable.

For its part, the Democratic Party welcomes independents and voters with no party affiliation to vote in its primaries. Every election year, that proves to be an empty offer. A Democratic primary in June is even more rare than a Democratic victory in November.

I’m not the only one making a political party change prior to the runoff. According to a recent South Dakota Searchlight story, since the primary, the Republican Party has gained at least 7,350 new members.

The influx of new members doesn’t seem to be welcomed by the party leaders. In another Searchlight story, state Republican Party Chairman Jim Eschenbaum said, “If you’re a Democrat, vote for Democrats. Work on your own party. Don’t sabotage our party. That’s what they’re doing.”

Eschenbaum seems to overlook the fact that independents and voters with no party affiliation outnumber registered Democrats in South Dakota. Eschenbaum calls this influx of new party members sabotage. Those new members will likely call it an attempt to have a say in the future of our state.

The political party Eschenbaum oversees has become a victim of its own success. Its membership has grown so large that it has spawned warring factions within the party. More traditional, small-government Republicans find themselves at odds with volatile “election integrity” enthusiasts whose agenda seems intent on proving that they are the most conservative members of the party.

One of our president’s favorite insults for those members of his own party who refuse to do his bidding is calling them RINOs — Republicans In Name Only. I may be a new member of the Republican Party, but make no mistake about it: I am a RINO.