Precinct captain

A precinct captain, also known as a precinct chairman, precinct delegate, precinct committee officer or precinct committeeman, is an elected official in the American political party system. The office establishes a direct link between a political party and the voters in a local electoral precinct.[1][2][3] Their role is to build a relationship between those who hold public office and those who vote at the polls.[4]

Election to the office is by ballot or by the county party executive committee. Voters file their declaration of candidacy with their party in their voting district. If elected during the primary, the Precinct Captain shall serve as long as one remains eligible, or until seeking reelection in the subsequent district primary. Requirements vary among states and counties.[5]

Responsibilities of the post include facilitating voter registration and absentee ballot access; leading get out the vote outreach efforts; distributing campaign and party literature; promoting the party; and addressing voter concerns.[3] In many states Precinct Captains are also eligible to establish party unit committees for fundraising.[1]

The concept of precinct leadership is to provide a grassroots position with officials generally serving as volunteers, though in some states they receive a stipend.[6] Positions of county captain have also been created, but are usually used for election campaigns rather than party organizing.[5]

In Illinois, Michelle Obama got her initial introduction to Democratic party politics when her father served as a Precinct Captain and the then-Michelle Robinson accompanied the elder Robinson on his rounds through his precinct.[7]

In the State of Washington, this office is known as the "Precinct Committee Officer".[8] In Washington, in case of a vacancy in the state legislature, the precinct committee officers will nominate candidates to fill the vacancy, which then need to be approved by the county council.[9] In the State of Oregon, this office is defined in state law under Oregon Revised Statue 248.015 as "Precinct Committee Person".

Office title designation by state

Titles may vary by political party.

  • Alabama - Unknown
  • Alaska - Unknown
  • Arizona - Precinct Committeeman[10][11]
  • Arkansas - Unknown
  • California - Precinct Committeemen[12]
  • Colorado - Precinct Organizer[13]
  • Connecticut - Town Committeeman[14]
  • Delaware - Precinct Committee Member[15]
  • Florida - Precinct Captain[16]
  • Georgia - Precinct Captain[17]
  • Hawaii - Precinct Committee[18]
  • Idaho - Precinct Committeeman[19]
  • Illinois - Precinct Committeeman[20]
  • Indiana - Precinct Committeeman[21]
  • Iowa - Precinct Captain[22]
  • Kansas - Precinct Captain[23]
  • Kentucky - Precinct Captain (with allowances for a Co-Captain and a Youth Captain for at least the Republican party)[24]
  • Louisiana - unknown
  • Maine - unknown
  • Maryland - Precinct Captain[25]
  • Massachusetts - Town Committeeman[26]
  • Michigan - Precinct Delegate[27] (officially, but less commonly, referred to as Delegate To County Convention)
  • Minnesota - Block Captain[28]
  • Mississippi - unknown
  • Missouri - unknown
  • Montana - Precinct Officer[29]
  • Nebraska - unknown
  • Nevada - Precinct Captain[30]
  • New Hampshire - unknown
  • New Jersey - unknown
  • New Mexico - Ward Chair[31]
  • New York - District Leader[32]
  • North Carolina - Precinct Chairman[33]
  • North Dakota - Precinct Committee Person[34]
  • Ohio - Precinct Captain[35]
  • Oklahoma - Precinct Chair[36]
  • Oregon - Precinct Committee Person[37][38]
  • Pennsylvania - Precinct Committee Member[39] (Republican) ~ Precinct Committee Person[40] (Democrat)
  • Rhode Island - unknown
  • South Carolina - Precinct President[41]
  • South Dakota - Precinct Committeeman or Committeewoman[42]
  • Tennessee - Precinct Committeeman or Committeewoman[43]
  • Texas - Precinct Chair[44][45]
  • Utah - Precinct Chair[46]
  • Vermont - unknown
  • Virginia - Precinct Committeeman[47]
  • Washington - Precinct Committee Officer[48]
  • West Virginia - unknown
  • Wisconsin - Community Captain[49]
  • Wyoming - precinct committeeman and committeewoman[50]

References
  1. "Archived copy" (PDF). www.collincountygop.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 February 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. "Most Powerful Office in the Land". Network America™. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  3. Gianassi, Donald (2023-01-21). "Who Is My Precinct Committeeman? [Comprehensive Answer] - CGAA.org". CGAA. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  4. Bryant, Christine. "What Are the Duties of a Precinct Committeeman? | Synonym". classroom.synonym.com. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  5. "Archived copy". www.eac.gov. Archived from the original on 9 February 2006. Retrieved 17 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "Become a County or Precinct Chair | Texas Democratic Party". www.txdemocrats.org. Archived from the original on 26 September 2009. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  7. Obama, Michelle (2018). Becoming. Viking Press. ISBN 978-0-241-33414-0.
  8. "Washington State Democratic Party |". Wa-democrats.org. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  9. Rich Smith (2019-07-01). "A Legislative Shake-Up in Bothell: Rep. Derek Stanford Fills Palumbo's Old Seat, and Deputy Mayor Davina Duerr Fills Stanford's". The Stranger. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
  10. GOP, AZ; INC, PSYCLONE MEDIA; azgop.com. "Precinct Committeeman". AZ GOP. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  11. "What is a PC?". Be A Precinct Committeeman. 2013-06-12. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  12. Perez, Cheryl (March 2021). "California Republican Party Structure" (PDF). Precinct Strategy. Retrieved 1 Oct 2023.
  13. Fish, Sandra (2023-02-06). "Colorado Democratic Party, GOP prepare for intraparty reorganizations that will have big influence over their future". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  14. "2022 Town Committee Primaries". CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  15. "Springfield Democrats" (PDF). springfielddems.org. Feb 2022. Retrieved 1 Oct 2023.
  16. "Precinct Captain Manual" (PDF). sarasotadems.com. 2021. Retrieved 2 Oct 2023.
  17. "Precinct Organizing". Fulton County Democrats. Retrieved 2023-10-03.
  18. OahuGOP. "Precinct Election Meetings – Honolulu County Republican Party". Retrieved 2023-10-03.
  19. "Section 34-624 – Idaho State Legislature". Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  20. "Become A Precinct Committeeman". Illinois Freedom Alliance. 2023. Retrieved 30 Sep 2023.
  21. "Precinct Committeemen Handbook" (PDF). Hamilton County GOP. 2020.
  22. desmoinesdem (2016-01-31). "How the Iowa caucuses work, part 4: What a precinct captain does". Bleeding Heartland. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  23. "Become a Precinct Captain | Northwest Johnson County Republicans". nwjocorepublicans.org. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  24. "Kentucky – Republican Party Overview – Take Over the GOP". Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  25. "Precinct Captain Responsibilities". Calvert County Democratic Party. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  26. "The 193rd General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts". Massachusetts Legislature. Retrieved 1 Oct 2023.
  27. "Become a Precinct Delegate". MI Precinct First. 2021-09-20. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  28. mnhd66brepublicans (2022-02-25). "Be a Block Captain in Your Precinct". Minnesota House District 66B Republicans. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  29. "Become a Precinct Officer". Montana GOP. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
  30. "Clark County Republican Party". clarkcountyrepublicanparty.com. Retrieved 5 Oct 2023.
  31. "Ward & Precinct Chair Roles". DPBC. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
  32. "What do district leaders do?". City & State NY. 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  33. "NC Democrats 2019 Precinct Packet: Your Guide to Organizing Your Precinct" (PDF). guilforddems.org. 2019. Retrieved 1 Oct 2013.
  34. "Bylaws - Dem-NPL Party Democrats". Dem-NPL Party. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
  35. "Precinct Captains Fairfield County GOP Ohio". www.fairfieldcountygop.org. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
  36. "Precinct Leadership and Volunteer Guide" (PDF). okdemocrats.org. February 2021. Retrieved 6 Oct 2023.
  37. "Become a PCP". Oregon Republican Party. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  38. "Precinct Committee Persons". Democratic Party of Oregon. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  39. "Republican Precinct Committee Member Qualifications and Duties" (PDF). Cumberland County Republican Party. May 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  40. "Precinct Committee Person Guide & Resources" (PDF). delcodems.com. 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  41. "My South Carolina GOP" (PDF). myscgop.com/. 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  42. Sand, Elisa. "There are 194 contested GOP precinct committee races in SD this year. Here's what voters should know". Aberdeen News. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  43. "TN Voices For Liberty". tnvoicesforliberty.com. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  44. "Precinct Chair and Activist Training and Reference Manual" (PDF). collindemocrats.org/. 2021. Retrieved 1 Oct 2023.
  45. bingham. "Collin County Republican Precinct Chairs | CollinGOP". Collin County Republican Party. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
  46. "Precinct Positions – Precinct Portal". Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  47. "How to Become a Precinct Committeeman – Conservative Action Center". 2021-02-14. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  48. "Become a Precinct Committee Officer". Washington Democrats. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  49. "Become a Community Captain". Republican Party of Wisconsin. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  50. "2021 Wyoming Statutes :: Title 22 - Elections :: Chapter 4 - Political Parties :: Article 1 - Major Political Parties :: Section 22-4-101 - Application; Composition, Election and Qualifications of County Central Committees; Certificate of Election". Justia Law. Retrieved 2023-10-12.

Sources
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