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The political party inspired by 1992 presidential campaign of Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot will hold its national convention in Yuma next month in what party members say will be the first step in spreading their message across the county.
"Yuma is a terrific small town and will be a great launching pad to get the Reform Party's message out," said National Reform Party Chairman Shawn O'Hara. "We are looking forward to encouraging Americans to take back this country one town at a time."
The Reform Party National Convention, which is expected to attract several hundred people, as well as some national media attention, will be held Nov. 11-13 at the Ramada Chilton Hotel & Conference Center.
"There is potential here. To say I am excited is to put it mildly," said Yuma County Reform Party Chairman Rodney Martin, in reaction to Yuma being chosen. "I raised eyebrows a few months ago when I floated the idea of pursuing and submitting a proposal to get the convention here. I knew I would be climbing a mountain, but I've done that before."
Party member say this the first time in their memory that a rural community has been chosen to host the convention.
"This sends a clear message that the Reform Party stands with hard-working people in rural communities who have borne the brunt of special interest politics," Martin said. "We are not just going to come around at election time and take people for granted, we'll leave that to the donkeys and elephants who both have poor memories."
Martin received a phone call last week from O'Hara, who personally congratulated him on authoring the winning proposal, which was selected by a unanimous vote by the Reform Party National Committee.
Las Vegas and Kansas City, Kan., had also submitted proposals, but were edged out by Yuma.
O'Hara, who was the last person on the site selection committee to vote for a location, said he is delighted about the selection, and excited about coming to Yuma, which had always been considered the front-runner to get the convention.
"I want people to come to our convention in Yuma and to bring their ideas for making America a better place," said O'Hara.
The site selection committee was to select the host city by the end of August, but Hurricane Katrina, which hit the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, delayed that decision.
"Our headquarters (in Hattiesburg, Miss.) was destroyed, as well as the homes of some of our party members," Martin said. "It delayed the process."
In his letter that accompanied the Yuma proposal, Martin stressed the importance of holding the convention in a rural community.
"I think Yuma is an outstanding choice and has a lot to offer in the way of presenting issues, not to mention we are on the forefront of several national issues that are currently being discussed," Martin said.
"Immigration reform, globalization and trade, and family and jobs issues are all hallmark issues in Yuma, so why not put the national spotlight on them?"
Shortly after Yuma won the bid, O'Hara named Martin as convention chairman in recognition of his efforts in promoting Yuma as a convention site.
"I'm honored to be asked by Chairman O'Harra to be national convention chairman," Martin said. "I love and believe in Yuma. I think this city is an example of all that is best in America, so there is no better place to hold the convention and have though provoking discussions of ideas and issues."
As convention chairman, Martin will plan and oversee an agenda filled with party business such as the election of officers and future plans to gain ballot recognition in Arizona.
"Right now I coordinating the agenda. It's my desire to have some top notch speakers at the convention, so definitely stay tuned," Martin said.
"It will give the Reform Party an excellent opportunity to showcase our party and our candidates in the upcoming elections."
The Reform Party, which has an estimated half a million members, grew out of the efforts of Perot's efforts in the 1992 presidential election, in which running as a independent, he was considered a viable third-party candidate with a chance of winning.
Perot pulled 19 million votes in 1992 during his presidential campaign, giving the party ballot access for the first time.
Disillusioned with the state of politics, Perot and his supporters founded the Reform Party in 1995, hoping to create a third party which would rival the Republicans and Democrats. He got another 8 million votes as the party's nominee again in 1996, which maintained the party's ballot access throughout the country.
In 2000, however, the party nearly dissolved after splitting into two factions and nominating separate candidates, conservative commentator Pat Buchanan and physicist John Haglin.
As a result neither candidate received enough votes in statewide elections to maintain ballot access in almost every state, forcing the party to have to start over again.
| Left to Right: Nico Degroot, Jack Kretzer, Rosella Quinn, Orville Weyrich, Stanley Lenihan, Rodney Martin | |
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