How Priebus Beat Steele

After seven agonizing rounds, Reince Priebus was elected RNC chair. His victory was the result of hours and hours of politicking and deal-making.

After an agonizing seven rounds of balloting, Wisconsin State Chair Reince Priebus was elected the next Republican National Committee Chairman.

Priebus inherits difficult challenges – in particular the $20 million in debt that the RNC currently holds and will need to retire.

One Republican strategist put it this way: you would need to convince around 650 big donors to give the maximum allowable $30,400 to the Republican National Committee. And donors would have to give with the knowledge that their money wouldn’t go towards electing any new Republicans; that they are essentially giving money to retire Michael Steele’s debt.

At his inaugural press conference as RNC chairman, FrumForum asked Priebus how he would convince big donors to retire Steele’s debt.

“A lot is at stake in this election, and they believe in the Republican Party – they believe that we need to save this country. And they feel that in their hearts and minds, and they want to come on board. I’ve already talked to many of them, they’re ready to go to work,” said Priebus.

Priebus’ election came after hours and hours of politicking and deal-making by the candidates for RNC Chair.

Priebus led on the first ballot with one vote, and never relinquished the lead, adding to his tally of supporters round and after round until he reached 97 votes on the seventh ballot.

There had been some talk on the floor about some tricky business – it was rumored that Priebus had told a few of his supporters to park their votes with Maria Cino on the first round and switch on the second to give the impression of momentum.

Regardless of whether this was actually true, the notion was taken with some offense by Herb Schoenbohm, the chair for the U.S. Virgin Islands and part of the famously important – and tight - island coalition.

“We don’t do ugly. What’s ugly was what Priebus did with Cino [parking votes]… Create a surge by artificial insemination. It offends me,” said Schoenbohm.

From what one can tell, the islands coalition – made up of votes from American territories and Hawaii – didn’t play a deciding factor in this RNC race, unlike in 2009, when their votes lifted Michael Steele to victory. It appears they stayed largely away from Priebus, even until the very end.

By the fourth round of balloting, Steele knew the gig was up. He dropped out of the race with 28 votes, having started the first round with 44. In his endorsement speech, he endorsed Maria Cino, and said, “I will step aside for others to lead… now I exit. Stage right.”

Steele’s endorsement mattered, but not much – Cino’s vote tally jumped to 40, but it appears that Steele’s votes split about evenly among Priebus, Cino and Anuzis. Wagner’s vote total remained unchanged in the fifth round – at 28 – but she declined to drop out.

It is here that some strategists will later argue Wagner could have dropped out in time to allow anti-Priebus forces to coalesce around an opponent. But with the sixth ballot, Priebus jumped to 80 votes – only five shy of the 85 required to win.

The seventh ballot was just a formality, even as Wagner dropped out to leave a field of three: Anuzis, Cino and Priebus.

After five hours, the Republican National Committee had elected a new chairman.

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