A disagreement on the candidate endorsement process has spawned a new organization to provide additional resources to Island County Republicans.

GOP of Island County, not to be confused with the Island County Republican Party, officially formed at the end of 2023, said David Adams, organization president.

“We wanted to get to something that was simpler, easier, and we think, of course, probably more effective,” he said.

When the Island County Republican Party precinct committee officers called for a vote to endorse Semi Bird for governor, Adams suggested having both Bird and David Reichert, his opponent, come in and talk. Instead, with a single-vote majority, the officers endorsed Bird.

Bird requested endorsement and Reichert didn’t, said Island County Republican Party President Tim Hazelo. He said the group invited Reichert to visit multiple times and he didn’t show. The precinct committee officers had all the information they needed and decided to call a vote.

According to Adams, the Island County Republican Party didn’t make the time available because they already decided. Bird won by one vote, and they endorsed him without hearing from anyone else.

On March 16, the GOP of Island County held their first candidates forum, where Reichert came and spoke for an hour. Guests were attentive and stayed the whole time, Adams said.

The new group won’t endorse a candidate, he said, and will instead let the voter decide and put their efforts into supporting the mission of the candidate who won.

“We don’t want to get into a position where we’re endorsing one Republican over another. Just, you don’t do it. It’s just, you know, you don’t do it. We won’t do it,” he said.

Reichert, the former King County sheriff, is perceived as a bit more moderate than Bird, a veteran and senior advisor to the U.S. Ambassador to Dhaka, Bangladesh.

According to Adams, these differences are not the cause for the new party.

“If we heard from Reichert, and he just didn’t cut the mustard, and we endorsed Semi anyway, great,” he said. “It was an upfront process.”

Similarly, Hazelo believes Reichert is another good option.

“I like Dave Reichert,” he said. “I don’t think he’s a bad guy. I think he’d be a fine governor, but that’s where the whole conflict came in, so I applaud them. The more conservative groups we have out there working hard to get conservative candidates elected, the better off we’re going to be.”

The biggest issue, Hazelo said, is the name.

“I thought it was too close to the Island County GOP,” he said, “so GOP of Island County and Island County GOP, then we have confusion, and we have people calling each group saying who are you and what do you represent?”

Some members of the Island County Republican Party feel like the new group is “stepping on their toes,” Adams said.

“It’s a free country,” he said. “We can form our own group and do our own thing. GOP of Island County is a way different name than the Island County Republican Party. It’s easy to tell them apart.”

Adams doesn’t even consider the new group a split from the original, as many members belong to both. It’s simply an opportunity for additional resources.

Ironically, Adams believes having separate groups will lead to more inclusivity. The GOP of Island County is less concerned about how conservative their members are. All Republicans are welcome, and they won’t debate about how Republican they are.

“We have general goals that are real simple: elect Republicans to beat Democrats. That’s it,” he said. “We don’t get bogged down in the other stuff. Put on the good quality training programs, raise money and support candidates and come up with new and unique ways to get the message out and get the votes coming your way.”

Hazelo believes the two groups will last as long as the current campaign, and after the election they will re-group and “everyone will be happy again.”

“Most of them have been friends in the past and I’m sure they’ll be friends in the future,” he said. “You always are going to have a little bit of political contention during these big election cycles. It’s just the way the world works.”

Overall, the groups have the same mission, Hazelo said, and he’s focusing on the bigger picture of what needs to be accomplished in the county.

On April 27, the GOP of Island County is holding campaign and ballot harvesting training, featuring the Pierce County Republican Party Chair Jason McMullen, Yakima County Republican Party Chair Matt Brown and Washington State Republican Party Chair Jim Walsh.