Jessie Balmert

jbalmert@enquirer.com

COLUMBUS - Ohio Republican Party will send two Kasich loyalists to the all-important rules committee for the Republican National Convention in Cleveland - a committee which could decide whether the governor has a shot at the GOP nomination.

Former House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson and Kasich adviser Don Thiabaut were elected to the rules committee at the Ohio Republican Party's meeting Friday. Each state sends two of its delegates, a man and a woman, to the 112-person committee that sets the convention’s rules before it starts.

Those rules could exclude a candidate or make his path more difficult. For example, one rule from 2012 requires a candidate to win a majority of the delegate votes from at least eight states to have his name on the ballot. That would disqualify Kasich, who has only won his home state, but the rule could be scrapped.

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Others elected to roles at the Republican National Convention include:

David Johnson and Tracey Winbush to the committee on platform

Cuyahoga County GOP Chairman Rob Frost and Rep. Barbara Sears to the committee on credentials

Jim Simon and Sandra Barber to the committee on permanent organization

Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges will lead the delegation.

Kasich's delegates were already selected when he filed a slate earlier this year. Local delegates include Hamilton County Republican Party Chairman Alex Triantafilou, Sen. Shannon Jones and Sherri Carbo.

Why can't we be friends?

Fissures exacerbated by nasty March primaries for the state governing body and other races led to a heated discussion at the Ohio Republican Party's Friday meeting – it's first since the election. The divides between so-called establishment Republicans and Tea Party members mirror the fights occurring nationwide. Some called for repercussions for party officials for attacking fellow Republicans in the primary while others pleaded for party unity.

Mary O'Toole, a member of the party's governing body, said the party attacked her sister, Judge Colleen O'Toole, during the March primary. O'Toole was running for Ohio Supreme Court against Judge Pat Fischer of Pleasant Ridge, the party's endorsed candidate. In fliers, O'Toole was compared to President Barack Obama.

"We cannot go scorched earth on our very own Republicans," Mary O'Toole said. Members of the Tea Party, including Gary Burkholder and Lisa Cooper, called for penalties for those who attacked fellow Republicans in violation of the party's bylaws.

But Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges said he is using the same standard to define an attack as his predecessors: "“If we are saying things about these candidates that are true, that is not an attack."

Borges detailed the party's successes: Gov. John Kasich won the Ohio primary and turnout rose on the Republican side. To succeed in November, Republicans need to quit fighting one another and focus on the Democrats, he said.

Tracey Winbush, a governing body member from Youngstown, called for an end to the in-fighting.

"This has been an ugly year, and I don’t see it getting any prettier," Winbush said. "We've all made some mistakes, everyone."

She later was selected for treasurer over Tea Party pick Bill Delaney in a 50-11 vote.