Tenn. Congressional Candidate Robby Starbuck Wins His Challenge Against the State GOP

The Tenn. GOP Executive Committee voted against Robby Starbuck as a Congressional Candidate.

Tennesean reports.

On Tuesday, the Tennessee Republican Party voted to eliminate three potential congressional candidates from the primary ballot for the 5th Congressional District. This included a Trump-backed candidate whose campaign upset some insiders.

Morgan Ortagus, Baxter Lee and Robby Starbuck were voted off the primary ballot by the party’s executive committee, Tennessee Republican Chairman Scott Golden confirmed Tuesday

Republican officials confirmed last week that three official challenges had been made against them, which resulted in a technical withdrawal from the ballot according to party bylaws.

Starbuck chose to fight back, contracting civil rights and constitutional attorney Harmeet Dhillon’s Liberty Law Center firm to challenge this decision. Jen Van Laar was our managing editor and reported exclusively that Dhillon submitted evidence preservation notices for the 17 Tenn. RNC executives who took the decision not to allow him to be removed from the primary election ballot. Starbuck also chose to use the vouching letters method to prove his “bona fide Republican” status according to the requirements of the Tennessee GOP bylaws:

Since Starbuck hasn’t lived in Tennessee long enough to have voted in three of the last four Republican primaries, he had to go the vouching route. Starbuck provided 14 letters of vouching to the committee. This is according to Scott Golden, TRP Chair.

Starbuck also provided his voting record from California, when he was living there.

Starbuck voted for the 2020 General Election as well as in a primary election in 2022, Tennessee. To prove that he had voted regularly in California, Starbuck provided the county party chairs with his California voter history prior to April 19, he stated. He also gave to the two counties Republican parties as well as the state party. Additionally, he organized a rally for support of the Williamson County Republican Party’s 2020 candidates.

The abrupt and secretive removal of Starbuck, Ortagus and Lee from the ballots drew suspicion and speculation.

Plaintiff’s claim under Tennessee Open Meetings Act should receive a temporary order of protection, according to the Court. The Court finds that Defendant committed TOMA violations; this meets the Tenn. R. Civ. success factor. P. 65.04. The Court also concluded that Mr. Starbuck would suffer irreparable injury if he had to stay off the ballot because he was expelled from it through an illegal procedure.

Chancellor Russell T. Perkins ultimately ruled that the Tenn. GOP violated Tennessee’s open meeting law in making their decision to remove the three from the ballot:

🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨Our client is ordered by a Tennessee court @robbystarbuckReturned to the ballot for the TN-5 congressional race as a candidate! TNGOP’s secret meeting to select other qualified candidates was null and barred by the law of open meetings, according to the Court. pic.twitter.com/0h9H5sLVnY

— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) June 4, 2022

Starbuck’s name must now be restored to the ballot for the August 4, 2022 Tennessee primary. Starbuck won a victory lap. This was a clear sign that Starbuck is willing to fight and will fight until the end.

BREAKING! WE DID IT! We won our case in court! Court has given instructions @TNGOPTell the state they have wrongfully decided to remove me from the ballot! Tennessee has a need for a fighter. We’ve shown with our relentless pursuits of Justice that we will fight to make Tennessee proud! pic.twitter.com/GucSN72I8j

— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) June 4, 2022