SECTION I
STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
- Purpose: The purpose of the State Central Committee shall be to coordinate the activities of the South Dakota Republican Party, to promote the establishment of Republican principles and policies and to give effective assistance in the conduct of national, state and local elections.
- Powers and Duties: In addition to those duties and functions prescribed by law, the State Central Committee when convened shall have full power and authority in all matters affecting the party organizations and functioning except as to such powers and functions as by law are conferred upon the state party convention. The general management of the affairs of the South Dakota Republican Party shall be vested in the State Central Committee. It may exercise all powers and duties of the State Executive Board. It shall so organize its operations and designate such officers and other personnel as it may determine necessary to accomplish its purposes.
- Organization: The State Central Committee shall consist of the county chairman, county vice chairman, state central committeeman and state central committeewoman from each county, the state chairman, state vice chairman, state secretary, state treasurer, national committeeman, national committeewoman, and the statewide chairman of each of the auxiliaries recognized in Section VII.2.
- Officers: The officers of the State Central Committee are the state chairman and the state vice chairman, who shall be of opposite sex, the state secretary and the state treasurer. These officers shall be elected at the first meeting of the State Central Committee held every odd numbered calendar year and shall hold their offices for a term of two years or until their successors are elected. With the approval of the State Central Committee, the state chairman shall appoint a deputy treasurer and such other officers as may be deemed necessary.
5. Duties of Officers:
A. State Chairman: The state chairman, as head of the South Dakota Republican Party, shall have the following duties:
1. The state chairman shall have charge of the State Party Headquarters.
2. The state chairman shall submit an annual budget by January 1 of each year to be approved by the State Central Committee.
3. The state chairman shall submit an annual plan of party goals and objectives to be approved by the State Central Committee.
4. The state chairman shall preside over meetings of the State Central Committee and the State Executive Board.
5. The state chairman shall coordinate and supervise the work of the other officers and of the County Central Committees.
6. The state chairman shall carry out any instructions given him/her by the State Executive Board and the State Central Committee.
7. The state chairman shall call meetings of the State Executive Board and the State Central Committee as hereinafter provided.
8. The state chairman shall appoint members to any committees deemed necessary for the operation of the Republican Party.
9. The state chairman shall appoint a state finance director who shall serve at the pleasure of the state chairman.
10. The state chairman shall appoint a finance committee composed of such membership as the state chairman shall determine to assist in meeting the financial needs of the State Central Committee.
B. State Vice Chairman: The state vice chairman shall perform the duties of the state chairman in the absence or disability of the state chairman.
C. State Secretary: The state secretary shall have the following duties:
1. The state secretary shall prepare suitable notices of forthcoming meetings of the State Central Committee.
2. The state secretary shall keep records of the attendance and of the meetings of each meeting of the State Central Committee and the Executive Board and prepare the minutes of all such meetings.
D. State Treasurer: The state treasurer shall have the following duties:
1. The state treasurer shall maintain adequate financial records and provide reports thereon to the State Central Committee. Receipts shall be given for money received upon policies established by the State Executive Board.
2. The state treasurer shall make all disbursements for Party expenditures according to a procedure approved by the State Executive Board.
3. The state treasurer shall file financial reports as required by law.
4. The state treasurer shall post such bonds as are necessary in amount fixed by State Central Committee.
6. Vacancies:
A. Events Causing Vacancy: The following events shall cause an officer of the State Central Committee to forfeit his or her office and the office declared vacant: death, resignation, failure to reside in the state, failure to be a registered Republican voter, filing any document with the Secretary of State or a county auditor to be an independent candidate in a general or special election in a race for a partisan public office in which a Republican has been nominated or has filed a petition for the Republican nomination, conviction of a felony, or violation of a bond required to be posted.
B. State Chairman: The state vice chairman shall automatically become state chairman whenever a vacancy shall occur in that office and shall serve the remainder of the term.
C. State Treasurer: The deputy treasurer shall automatically become state treasurer whenever a vacancy shall occur in that office and shall serve the remainder of the term.
D. Other Offices: Any vacancy occurring in the office of state vice chairman or state secretary shall be filled in the following manner:
1. Upon the vacancy, the state chairman may appoint a proxy who shall perform the duties of the office until the next meeting of the State Central Committee as provided below.
2. At the next regular or special meeting of the State Central Committee an election shall be held to fill the vacancy.
3. The position shall be filled by majority vote of the State Central Committee members who are present at the meeting and that person shall serve the remainder of the term.
E. National Committeeman and National Committeewoman: Any vacancy in the positions of national committeeman or national committeewoman shall be filled in the same manner as provided above in Sec. I.6.D. A vacancy shall occur in those positions as provided in the rules of the national Republican Party.
7. Meetings:
A. Regular Meetings: Two regular meetings of the State Central Committee shall be held each year upon the call of the state chairman. One meeting shall be held during January or February and the second meeting shall be held during June, July, August, or September. The State Central Committee may move these meetings to a month other than those specified.
B. Special Meetings: Special meetings for specific purposes may be called by the state chairman or upon the written request of at least one member of each county delegation of at least 10 different counties.
C. Notices: Notices of all meetings shall be sent at least 14 days in advance of the meeting to all members of the State Central Committee and shall clearly indicate the agenda, place, date and hour of the meeting. This provision shall not limit any member from presenting any matter at a regular meeting whether or not included in the agenda in the written notice, except for bylaw amendments. Notices may be sent by mail or email.
D. Minutes: Unofficial minutes of all meetings shall be made available upon request to State Central Committee members within 14 days of the meeting date.
E. Quorum: A quorum of the State Central Committee shall consist of at least 45 members. A member is considered present if the member is at the meeting in person, is represented by proxy, or is attending by telephone teleconference or other electronic (audio or video) means.
F. Voting: The voting at each meeting shall be on the basis of one vote for each member present. Voting shall be by roll call ballot if requested by one-fifth of the members present.
G. Proxies: Proxies shall be allowed for attendance and voting at meetings of the State Central Committee under the following circumstances:
- All proxies must be in writing and signed by the person granting the proxy.
- No person may hold more than one proxy.
- A member of a county delegation may grant his or her proxy only to another registered Republican who resides in the county the member represents.
- The state chairman, state vice chairman, state secretary, state treasurer, national committeeman and national committeewoman may grant his or her proxy to any registered Republican who resides in the state.
H. Rules of Order: The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the State Central Committee in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any special rules of order the State Central Committee may adopt.
I. Electronic Meetings: A meeting of the State Central Committee may be held electronically. Notice of an electronic meeting is valid if sent at least five days in advance, not including weekends or holidays. No proxies are permitted at a meeting held electronically.