BY-LAWS OF THE PUTNAM COUNTY REPUBLICAN PARTY
Article I
Name and Purpose
Section 1. This organization is the Putnam County Republican Party and will be referred to as the PCRP throughout this document.
Section 2. The purposes of the PCRP include, but are not limited to, the following:
A. Electing Republican candidates to office on the national, state, and local levels.
B. Recruiting Republican candidates to run for office.
C. Assisting the Tennessee Republican Party and the Republican National Committee.
D. Recruiting membership in the Republican Party at all levels.
E. Promoting public awareness of the Republican position on public issues and fostering good citizenship in general.
F. Increasing the effectiveness of our members in the cause of good government through active political participation.
G. Raising funds for Republican election campaigns and for promoting Republican ideals.
Article II
County Executive Committee
Section 1. The affairs of the PCRP shall be governed by the County Executive Committee in accordance with the by-laws of the Tennessee Republican Party and the by-laws contained herein.
Section 2. The County Executive Committee shall consist of Chair, Vice Chair (opposite sex as Chair), Secretary, Vice Secretary, Treasurer, Vice Treasurer, immediate Past Chair, all State Executive Committee members representing the county, Chairs of the Republican Women's Organization and the Young Republicans (or in their absence, a representative of those constituencies appointed by the State Chair).
Section 2a. The Vice Chair, Vice Secretary and Vice Treasurer will automatically assume the duties of the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer, respectively, in their absence.
Section 3. Neither the County Executive Committee as a body, nor the County Chair, shall endorse any Republican candidate in a contested primary election for local, state, or national elections.
Section 3a. Section 3 above shall not apply to a Chair in primary election in which the Chair, his/her spouse, or his/her immediate family member is a candidate.
Section 4. Members of the County Executive Committee are expected to attend every meeting. Three successive absences without a valid reason are grounds for removal from the County Executive Committee.
Section 5. Any member of the County Executive Committee can be removed by a simple majority of those present.
Article III
Election of Officers
Section 1. Election of officers to the County Executive Committee shall be made in accordance with State By-laws. (Copies available from the County Chair or State Executive Committee members.) Generally, officers are elected at county reorganizations held between January 1 and March 31 of each odd numbered year. In the event of the death, resignation, or moving out of the county by an officer, the County Executive Committee shall immediately elect a replacement to serve until the next reorganization.
Section 2. All officers of the County Executive Committee are elected for two-year terms and are limited to two consecutive full terms in the same office.
Article IV
Meetings
Section 1. The County Executive Committee shall set its schedule at the beginning of each year. This will enhance the committee's ability to plan effective strategies and meetings.
Section 2. The County Executive Committee shall meet at least quarterly and shall meet monthly during election years.
Section 3. Special meetings may be called by the Chair or by any two members of the County Executive Committee in the absence of the Chair with five (5) days written notice to the membership.
Article V
Officers' Duties
Section 1. The County Chair shall be the chief executive of the PCRP and of the County Executive Committee. He/She shall be responsible for the management and administration of the affairs of the County Executive Committee and shall coordinate the political activities of the PCRP. He/She shall preserve order and decorum at all meetings.
Section 1a. The County Chair shall have the right to approve all special committee chairs.
Section 2. The Vice Chair shall perform the duties of the County Chair in his/her absence. If both the County Chair and the Vice Chair are absent from a County Executive Committee meeting, the County Executive Committee shall elect a temporary County Chair to preside at the meeting.
Section 3. The Secretary shall take the minutes of each meeting of the County Executive Committee. If the Secretary must be absent from such a meeting, the Vice Secretary shall be responsible. If both Secretary and Vice Secretary are absent from a County Executive Committee meeting, the Secretary shall be responsible for obtaining a replacement. The Secretary shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the County Chair of the County Executive Committee. All records of the Secretary shall be and remain the property of the County Executive Committee.
Section 4. The Treasurer shall be responsible for implementing an internal system of financial controls. He/She shall be responsible for the bank statement and shall be responsible for counting and depositing moneys received by the PCRP. The Treasurer shall report at each regular or special meeting of the County Executive Committee all receipts and disbursements since the previous meeting. All records of the Treasurer shall be and remain the property of the County Executive Committee.
Section 5. The Vice Treasurer shall assist the Treasurer in performing his/her duties.
Article VI
Funds and Finance
A Financial Review Committee shall be appointed by the County Executive Committee during the month of December each year. This committee shall audit the books of the Treasurer during the first ten (10) days of the following month.
Article VII
Membership
Section 1. A person shall be a voting member of the PCRP or of the County Executive Committee if he/she is a "bona fide" Republican. The term "bona fide" means a registered voter residing in the county who is any of the following:
A. A citizen who is actively involved in the PCRP or State Republican Party.
B. A citizen who has voted in at least two (2) of the four (4) most recent state and/or local Republican primary elections, or
C. A citizen who upon challenge signs public, written affirmation of allegiance to the Republican Party.
Article VIII
Amendment of By-Laws
These by-laws may be amended by a majority of the full voting membership of the County Executive Committee at any meeting, provided that notice of the meeting at which the vote is to be taken includes a copy of the proposed amendment. Any amendment is subject to approval by the Chair of the Tennessee Republican Party.
Article IX
Conformity
These by-laws are intended to be in conformity with all by-laws, rules, and regulations of the Tennessee Republican Party including the Republican National Committee, governing federal and Tennessee statutes, rules and regulation.
Article X
Robert's Rules
The most recent revised edition of Robert's Rules of Order shall govern all proceedings on matters not specifically covered by these By-Laws.
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