Chairman Bryan Christ Sues His Political Opponent!
December 6, 2023 | press@mctxgop.org
CONROE, TX - After Republican Party of Texas Chairman Matt Rinaldi called the meeting of the Montgomery County District Executive Committee for the location where the party majority was conducting their December 5 County Executive Committee (CEC) meeting, County Chairman Bryan Christ immediately filed a lawsuit against his political opponent and 17 other Precinct Chairs in an effort to prevent those members from voting in the District Executive Committee meeting.
Meeting Call by Republican Party of Texas Chairman Matt Rinaldi
Chairman Christ then called his own District Executive Committee Meeting in direct violation of Texas Election Code 171.054, which reads in part:
“The state chair shall call a meeting of the district executive committee to convene either as a whole in one location or separately in each county in the district at any time after the precinct chairs take office to fill a vacancy in a nomination or to transact any other business by the committee. The state chair shall notify the members of the district executive committee in advance of the time, place, and purpose of any meeting or meetings.” TEC 171.054(b)
Prior to the CEC meeting, Chairman Christ also violated Republican Party of Texas (RPT) Rule 8(f) by calling a duplicate meeting on the same date and at the same time for his minority faction of the party. This is a tactic Chairman Christ has used to divide the party and disrupt business since his reelection in 2022.
State Party Chairman Matt Rinaldi did not recognize Chairman Christ’s improperly called meeting and instead called the District Executive Committee Meeting to be held directly following the party majority’s properly scheduled and noticed meeting at the KC Events Center, indicating that Chairman Christ’s dual meeting was improper and fallacious.
Chairman Christ had an opportunity to show leadership in this situation and attend and chair the properly called meeting, which the State Party recognized. Instead, Chairman Christ and his minority faction chose not to attend the properly called CEC meeting or the District Executive Committee Meeting as called by State Party Chairman Rinaldi. Chairman Christ sent two representatives to the meeting and a process server, disrupting the meeting and inflicting anxiety and distress on members of the CEC and Republican Party visitors.
Attacks Against Chairman Christ’s Political Opponent & Conservative Precinct Chairs
Similar to the lawfare being waged against President Trump and other Conservatives, Chairman Christ’s tactic of filing a lawsuit five days before the Primary filing deadline is a blatant attack against his political opponent, Gwen Withrow, who is named in the lawsuit. Withrow is a member of the State Republican Executive Committee (SREC) for District 4 and is running for County Chair in an attempt to bring the party back together.
The lawsuit is also an attempt to malign the conservative Precinct Chairs who are running against Chairman Christ’s hand-picked candidates in the 2024 Primary. The individuals Chairman Christ filed against were duly appointed by the majority of elected Precinct Chairs to fill vacancies on the CEC, per Article IV, Section 4 of the Party Bylaws. In a December 6 news release, Chairman Christ called those named in the lawsuit “imposters” and members of his minority group took to social media, comparing the party majority to Democrats and claiming the majority is seeking to “suppress your vote,” “eliminate the Primary,” and “select a candidate (their nominee) for you in the general election.” Anyone making slanderous accusations against the party majority should be asked to produce documented evidence of their baseless claims. They have no evidence because the claims are entirely false.
In reality, the party majority is made up of grassroots Conservatives who spent every day throughout Early Voting and all day on Election Day, November 7, educating voters on Republican principles and helping get Republicans elected. Meanwhile, Chairman Christ and his splinter group were missing in action at the polls once again.
Anyone making slanderous accusations against the party majority should be asked to produce documented evidence of their baseless claims. They have no evidence because the claims are entirely false.
Chairman Christ’s continued obstruction of party business only serves to weaken the Republican Party in Montgomery County, which has historically been a Republican stronghold and has been credited by Attorney General Ken Paxton and Senator Ted Cruz as critical to their successful reelection campaigns.
The CEC has already ruled on our Chairman’s actions with a Resolution to Censure and a Vote of No Confidence. We will continue to defend the right for Conservatives to have a voice and oppose Chairman Christ’s efforts to divide and disrupt the party as he attempts to replace it with his “Montgomery County Republican Club PAC,” which is not affiliated with the Republican Party of Texas and, according to his own statements, allows the Chairman to circumvent the decisions of the duly elected party majority.
Resolution to Censure County Chairman Bryan Christ
A Call for a Vote of No Confidence in County Chair Bryan Christ
Timeline & Documentation of Events
Please visit the County Party Updates page on the official Montgomery County Republican Party website to view a timeline and documentation of events that have caused the divide in the party.
For additional background or questions, please contact:
Jon Bouché, MCRP Vice Chairman, jon.bouche@cbunited.com
DJ Fike, MCRP Secretary, secretary@mctxgop.org
Dale Inman, State Republican Executive Committee Member for Dist. 4, dale77304@gmail.com
MCRP Communication Committee, press@mctxgop.org
We will post updates on this situation at mctxgop.org/news-releases.
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