April Burbank, and Alexandre Silberman

Burlington Free Press

If you sent Janssen Willhoit an email in the last few weeks, you might want to try again.

He's a delegate to the Republican National Convention, and furthermore, he's part of the influential rules committee that is setting the stage for next week's convention.

Willhoit, a state representative from St. Johnsbury, has been flooded with more than 30,000 emails from the various factions of the Republican Party.

“I’ve actually missed personal (emails)," Willhoit said, "It’s at such a whole other level than when I was in the Legislature.”

Willhoit is one of 29 Vermont delegates and alternate delegates attending the upcoming Republican gathering in Cleveland, where the party will sort through controversy over presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Take, for example, convention rules. Factions within the party have struggled over how delegates should be allowed to vote on the convention floor. A group pushing back against Trump has called for a rule allowing delegates to vote freely, regardless of how their home states voted in the Republican primary.

The effort to unbind delegates is unlikely to succeed, Willhoit said in an interview early this week before he traveled to Cleveland for the committee meeting.

Most of Vermont's delegates publicly support Trump, and Republican National Committeeman Jay Shepard says the vast majority of Republicans will back his candidacy.

“I’m expecting everyone to come around and support Trump,” said Shepard, of Essex Junction.

Darcie Johnston, a delegate who is the Vermont lead-organizer for the Donald Trump campaign, has little concern about protests and division within the party.

“I think the party will come together. It’s coming closer together everyday,” Johnston said. “We have a great nominee, Cleveland is a great city, and it's going to be another successful convention.”

Some Vermont delegates, however, remain hesitant.

Willhoit initially endorsed Rand Paul in the Republican primary. Next week he plans to cast his delegate vote for John Kasich, who won 30 percent of Vermont's primary votes in March, just behind Trump's 33 percent. He wants to ensure that non-Trump delegates are allowed to vote for candidates other than Trump during the convention.

“I believe in good, civil debate and discourse," Willhoit said. "By having those voices heard and be a part of the conversation, then we will come out of the convention with an even stronger candidate.”

And when it comes to voting for Trump in the general election?

​“I hope so. I’m not there yet," Willhoit said, adding that he would "certainly not" cross parties to support presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Vermont Republicans seek unity in Trump's shadow

Paul Dame, a Rand Paul supporter and delegate from Essex Junction, believes unbinding the delegates could be a positive change within the party. Dame served as Paul’s Vermont state director during the primaries.

Paul also believes that if implemented, the new rule would have little impact at this year’s convention.

"Even if the delegates were all unbound, I’m not sure it would make much of a difference,” he said. “There’s not much that can be done to stop Trump, and people are getting used to that idea.”

Contact April Burbank at 802-660-1863 or aburbank@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/AprilBurbank Contact Alexandre Silberman at (802) 651-4888 or asilberman@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/alexsilbermanvt.

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