Maria Cino Receives First Endorsements
Maria Cino, the CEO for the 2008 Republican National Convention, announced her first two public endorsements on Saturday.
Priscilla Rakestraw, the National Committeewoman from Delaware, and Evie Axdahl, the National Committeewoman from Minnesota, expressed their support for Cino in letters to the Republican National Committee.
Rakestraw, who is the longing serving member of the 168 member body, told members that Cino should be the RNC's choice in "challenging times":
"Maria has the trust and confidence of Republican donors, elected officials, and operatives across the country. Those are the measuring sticks that I used in my decision-making process. I urge you to measure Maria Cino’s experience and proven ability against the urgent – no, critical – needs of the Republican National Committee... Because of her unmatched skills and experience in leading the Party and our candidates to victory, I strongly believe that Maria Cino is the leader we need right now."
FrumForum first suggested Rakestraw would be an important Maria Cino supporter in mid-November.
Rakestraw's endorsement is joined by the endorsement of Evie Axdahl, who was a founding member of the RNC's Conservative Caucus.
"Maria has raised more money, successfully managed more party organizations and won more elections than any of the other candidates. She has raised and managed hundreds of millions of dollars for national committees, state parties and candidates and has earned the respect and trust of major donors in the process. She created the modern-day victory program and managed one of the best political conventions ever. She turned a nearly-bankrupt NRCC into a $100 million juggernaut that propelled our party into the majority in the House for the first time in 40 years,” wrote Axdahl.
“In addition to having the skills and experience we need, Maria also has the conservative values we all share. She’s a fiscal conservative in theory and in practice, spending as much as it took to win but no more. She’s a life-long Catholic who is ardently pro-life and a supporter of traditional family structure and values,” she continued.
Cino's two endorsements bring her even with former RNC political director Gentry Collins, who has the announced support of RNC members Chris Healy and Matt Strawn.