If you have not heard, there is a large grassroots movement in Alaska that is a direct result of Ron Paul and his campaign for president. This is not a new movement but has gained substantial traction in recent months. I was inspired by his message of small government, individual liberty and personal responsibility in 2007 when I was watching one of the early Republican debates. I vividly remember thinking how much sense he made and was surprised someone was talking so much logic on the national stage. I became a delegate to the 2008 Alaska Republican Convention. I am now a candidate for State House in District 22. Since his 2008 campaign for president, the message has continued through groups like the Campaign for Liberty and Young Americans for Liberty. This movement is much bigger than one person, and I believe it will have lasting impacts on the political landscape and more specifically the Alaska Republican Party.
We all saw the energy and momentum that surrounded Barack Obama in 2008. Young people saw the chance for hope and "change we can believe in" and flocked to support someone whom they saw as a symbol of real change. We all see what kind of change that he and the Democrats brought us. It is clear that a lot of the former supporters are disillusioned about the broken promises of ending the wars and restoring civil liberties. I highly doubt the long line of people waiting to change their voter registration to Republican at my polling station during the preference poll were doing it to support the other candidates. These people see Ron Paul and his message of peace as genuine and are now supporting him by becoming delegates and getting involved in the process and Party. The Alaskans for Ron Paul Facebook page currently has 651 very active members, for comparison the Alaska Republican Party page has 2,772 members. The Republican Party needs to embrace these new supporters, not resist them, and realize the opportunity to grow the party.
In 2008 when I was studying at UAA, I had a fellow classmate who was one of those young Obama supporters. He was so inspired that he volunteered to make calls and help with the campaign. I recently bumped into him at the Dimond Center and we started talking. One of the first things he said to me was that he had been wrong about Obama and that I was right about Ron Paul. He never would have thought he would ever be a Republican, but now he is because of Ron Paul's message.
Super Tuesday's Alaska preference poll was a good example of how organized and big this movement really is. In my district convention, 9 out of the 10 delegates to the state convention elected were Ron Paul supporters, as were the newly elected chair, vice chair and secretary. District captains were established statewide before the conventions that organized supporters to vote and show up for their district conventions. This is still going on as not all of the conventions have occurred yet. During the preference poll I overheard a conversation where one guy told another, "Who are all these Ron Paul people, they are going to take over the damn party." He should have been saying how great it is to have all these new people in the party. The Republican Party needs to embrace these new supporters, not resist them, and realize the opportunity to grow the party.
We are inspired and motivated by the message of liberty and personal responsibility. We are organized and determined. The other day, I was at a lunch for the Alaska Republican Women's Club and there was a lot of talk about what happened at the poll on Tuesday. One person, a former legislator and current candidate for the Legislature, went as far to say the only reason there were so many Ron Paul supporters at the poll was because the Ron Paul campaign was paying their delegate fees. I informed him of how utterly untrue and ridiculous that was. Another person said she could not recall a time when there were so many people who wanted to be delegates and that they even had alternates. While one person complained that they hijacked the conventions, the best response I heard was, "Well where were our people, we cannot fault them for organizing and showing up."
The leaders of the Alaska Republican Party and the old-guard types should be welcoming this new wave of members who are excited and motivated. Like it or not, we are getting involved, and we are determined to change the status quo. People tend to be scared of what is different, but I believe our message is a powerful one that brings people together and should be heard. Victor Hugo said, "No one can stop an idea whose time has come." People, especially young people, are tired of the government telling us it can solve our problems. In fact, in many cases it is the problem. The Republican Party has lost its way and it is up to a new wave of young and energetic supporters to help restore it. It is hard to argue that individual liberty and personal responsibility are bad things.
Jeff Landfield was a delegate to the 2008 Alaska Republican Convention. He is currently running as a Republican for the Alaska State House in newly formed District 22. He holds a BA in history with a minor in economics from UAA. He has lived in Alaska since 2004.
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