Eli Bremer, Dave Williams both assert themselves as Colorado GOP chair
Eli Bremer, a former El Paso County GOP chairman, speaks to a crowd intent on ousting Colorado GOP Chair Dave Williams, on July 27, 2024. (Andrew Fraieli for Colorado Newsline)
Eli Bremer and a group of newly selected leaders in the Colorado Republican Party are moving forward with plans to rectify the "damage" done by the previous members of the executive board, even as those same people reject the results of the party central committee vote that sought to oust them, Bremer said.
"I don't believe they will go quickly or peacefully. We're expecting them to exhaust all of their legal resources," Bremer told Colorado Newsline.
Bremer was elected chair by a group of Colorado Republican Party central committee members on Aug. 24 right after that group voted to remove former state Rep. Dave Williams as head of the party. It was the culmination of a months-long effort by a pair of disenchanted Republicans to get rid of Williams and his executive committee. The group also voted to remove and replace the party's vice chair and secretary during the meeting.
The result is that Bremer and Williams are simultaneously calling themselves the duly elected chair of the state GOP.
Williams, who was elected to the chairmanship in March 2023, has called the Aug. 24 meeting illegitimate, leaning on an opinion from a parliamentarian who has worked with the national Republican party. An Aug. 31 meeting in Castle Rock, William says, is the only valid venue for a vote on his removal to take place.
"Your State Party Leadership will respect the results of August 31st no matter how you choose to move forward. You're the boss," Williams wrote in an email to Republicans on Wednesday.
An emailed agenda lists an item for "Consideration of Removal of Elected Officers" at the Aug. 31 meeting.
But Bremer's camp claims their meeting and subsequent election are legally sound and follow party bylaws. El Paso County Republican Party Vice Chair Todd Watkins and Jefferson County Republican Party Chair Nancy Pallozzi gathered enough signatures to force a meeting to consider Williams' leadership, they say. At that meeting, an overwhelming majority of the credentialed members present — about 180 people of the 400-plus central committee membership — decided to remove Williams. They also voted to cancel the Aug. 31 meeting.
Bremer, former chair of the El Paso County Republican Party, does not have access to the state party's bank account, Greenwood Village headquarters or official email. That is not preventing him, however, from reaching out to Republican candidates and campaigns and acting as chair.
"There will be a fight in court at every step of the way. They will have to be evicted. They're basically squatters at this point," he said of Williams and the ousted executive committee.
"We don't need to get the email account. I have the email list of all the chairs in the state and we're already communicating. So whether it comes from my personal email or the one that says 'Chairman of GOP,' they know I'm the chairman," he said.
There will be a fight in court at every step of the way. They will have to be evicted. They're basically squatters at this point.
– Eli Bremer
He has set up what he calls a "satellite" office in Colorado Springs and is working with county chairs to order yard signs and handouts for former President Donald Trump's campaign. He sees his role as working with and supporting candidates so Republicans are elected this November, and he has met with the National Republican Congressional Committee to begin coordinated efforts.
The NRCC has its eyes on Colorado's 8th Congressional District, where Republican state Rep. Gabe Evans is running against Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo. Under Williams, the Colorado GOP endorsed and financially supported primary candidates, including Evans' opponent, for the first time.
The NRCC recognizes the results of the Aug. 24 meeting and Bremer as chair.
"(Candidates) feel like they're always looking behind them to see if they're going to get stabbed in the back, and they're waiting for that email to come from the state party that is going to derail them for the day and cost them donors," Bremer said.
The state party has sent a series of emails under Williams' leadership that target LGBTQ people, including a message in June that railed against Pride Month and encouraged people to burn Pride flags. Many elected officials and other Republicans encouraged Williams to step down in the wake of that email. Then, this month, the party sent another email misgendering and deadnaming a Democratic state Senate candidate without approval from the Republican in the race.
"It's as if they were trying to cause problems for our candidates," Bremer said.
The Republican National Committee could become the arbitrators of the issue, as they did in Michigan earlier this year when a former state party chair did not accept the results of a vote to remove her from office. In that case, the RNC formally recognized former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra as state party chair about one month after members voted out Kristina Karamo. A court then affirmed Hoekstra as chair. Karamo is appealing the decision.
The RNC still listed Williams as state chair as of 3 p.m. Wednesday.
In an email to party members Wednesday, Williams wrote that he plans to file criminal charges against Bremer and his allies over a "false social media post of (his) account that attempted to mislead our members and the public."
It is unclear what the social media post consisted of. Williams did not immediately return a request for comment.
