Just because public gatherings have been shut down doesn't mean there isn't a lot going on to get our candidates elected and re-election this November, events we need you to be a part of!

This week we are having a TRUMP NATIONAL WEEK OF ACTION! If you can give some time just one day or every day, you can do a lot to help re-elect our President. Our economy has been hot hard by COVID-19 and we know Donald J. Trump is the one we need in the White House to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN after this crisis is over.

You can sign up to volunteer here !

Also, mark your calendars for May 18 and May 19 as the Cobb County Republican Women's Club will be hosting online forums from 7-9PM those days for our local candidates. We will have more details in next week's newsletter and on our Facebook page.

Finally, we are excited to announce that an old friend of the Cobb GOP, former Maryland Governor Bob Ehrlich will be joining us on Saturday, June 6 as the speaker for our June Virtual Breakfast.

See below for more information and registration. Also, be sure to follow Governor Ehrlich on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/bob_ehrlich .

You can also get an autographed copy of Gov. Ehrlich's book, Bet You Didn't See That One Coming from the Cobb County Republican Party for $30 for non-Cobb GOP members and $10 for Members !

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

I have a first cousin and first cousin-in-law who are health care workers. Ashlea Stumpert, the daughter of former Cobb GOP Chairman Scott Johnson is a RN and her husband is a police officer. Cobb GOP member and HD 40 Secretary Fun Fong is an ER doctor who was recently highlighted by U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler for his work combating COVID-19. Throughout our GOP community, many of our members are actively engaged in fighting COVID-19, and we cannot thank them enough.

However, it's not just the front line workers who we owe a measure of gratitude to. Our Cobb GOP members are also going the extra mile to help during this crisis.

Recently, Cobb GOP Deputy General Counsel Neera Bahl and member Juan Violantes , co-owner of Giovanni's Italian Restaurant in Powder Springs, surprised workers at the Kennestone Hospital, Cardiology Department by delivering 50 lunches.

Each week, Georgia Federation of Republican Women President and Cobb GOP 1st Vice-Chair Kim Sherk volunteers with "Backpack Blessings" at Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church to make sure kids who are learning at home will have enough to eat. She has also been recording videos reading children's books to be played at story time in local schools. I've even recorded one myself.

These are only a couple of examples of the dozens I see on social media or hear about talking with others. Cobb County Republicans are quietly making a difference for our community each and every day of this crisis. In the articles below, how have ways you can help too.

The Cobb County Republican Party especially thanks those on the front lines during this crisis who put their health, safety, and welfare on the line daily to support us.

We have posted a video on facebook to show our support . It has already been shared 38 times and reached over 2,500 people. Please take a moment to watch, and share.

You can also view it right here:

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

Tuesday, April 21, we will begin the first of a series of Virtual Forums hosted on Facebook live to help Cobb voters get to know their candidates running in the June 9 Primary.

Tuesday, beginning at 7PM, we will have the candidates running for judicial positions in Cobb County for both Superior and State Courts.

There is no registration required, just visit www.Facebook.com/CobbGOP and we will be streaming live on there. I want to thank Cobb GOP General Counsel Tonya Boga for getting the candidates together and Catherine Busse and Michael Murphy for agreeing to serve as moderators.

Be on the lookout for future forums with our School Board and County Commission candidates as well. The Cobb GRA has their County Commission Chair Candidate Zoom Interviews on Tuesday morning running from 10:00am to 1:00pm with all three candidates. We will also be looking to hear from candidates from the districts at some point.

In addition, we are pleased to announce that Congressman Barry Loudermilk will be the speaker for our May Virtual Breakfast. Registration details are below.

Finally, there are plenty of opportunities to volunteer and help in the re-election efforts for President Trump! The Georgia Trump campaign needs people willing to make phone calls for the President. The campaign has an app which will allow you to turn you own cell phone into a PHONE BANKING MACHINE! See the TRUMP VICTORY NEWS section below for more information.

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

In Nov. 2010, I got my notice that I had passed the Georgia Bar exam, but a couple days later lost my election for State House district 37 by a narrow margin 53/47%.

With the craziness leading up to the election, I had copied down the wrong day for my law school class’s swearing in and missed it.

I needed to find a judge to swear me in, and nearly a month later, it hadn’t happened. So, I called up Babe Byrne who almost immediately got me before her boss, Judge Kreeger the day before my 35th birthday. You don’t get to practice until a judge swears you in and for me, that wouldn’t have happened without Babe Byrne making it so. On Dec. 10, 2010, I started on my new career.

No other members of my family were there for this occasion, but Babe was.

Thank you  Babe Byrne  for being part of one of the most important days of my life. 

Bill Byrne , I know I share the sentiments of our members who have known you and Babe for years that you and the family are in all of our thoughts and prayers. Blessings to you all.

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

Technology is an amazing thing.

It has allowed us to stay connected to the outside world, work from home, and educate our children, all while the world is shut down.

While for now, the Cobb GOP office is still remaining closed, this Saturday we will be moving our Cobb GOP Breakfast ONLINE too.

Georgia's National Committeeman Jason Thompson will be our keynote speaker to discuss the election process for delegates and alternates to the Republican National Convention, what the RNC is doing to make sure the convention still goes on as planned, and other topics dealing with the Party.

There will be two ways you can join. If you want to be able to ask questions, you can join via Zoom Conference call. You can log on to the call with your smart phone or computer. Be sure to download the app prior to joining the call.

If you just want to watch, we will also be live streaming the call on our Cobb GOP Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/CobbGOP .

I look forward to seeing you (virtually) on Saturday!

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

The world has certainly changed a lot since our last weekly newsletter.

• Schools are closed.
• Businesses are shuttered.
• People are working from home.
• Unemployment numbers are soaring.
• An political rallies and debates have been postponed or outright cancelled.
• Emergency declarations have been issued for our state, county, and cities.
• Each day the number of new cases of COVID-19 increases, as do the number of deaths.

The Cobb GOP has faced its own tragedies in the past week as Dowell 01 Precinct Chairman Reid McAlister passed away after a short battle with cancer, the step-father-in-law of former Cobb GOP Vice-Chair Bernard Reynolds passed away from COVID-19 and COPD, former Cobb County Commissioner Scott Chadwick is in the ICU battling COVID-19, Babe Atkins Byrne is also in the hospital on other health issues. Please keep them and their families in your thoughts and prayers.

However, on a positive note, Sen. Bruce Thompson is out of the hospital and on the mend from COVID-19 and Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick is recovering from it too.

For now, the Cobb GOP office will remain closed.

We are officially cancelling the April breakfast. We will be highlighting the two sponsors who paid to sponsor the April breakfast online as our newsletter sponsor through April.

Despite the bad news, we see Americans do what we do best... come together, united for the common good . Businesses are pitching in to find ways to serve those on the front lines. CEOs are giving up their pay so their workers can continue to get a paycheck, meetings are moving online so work, including the work of the party, can continue.

Our commitment is to keep you informed and provide opportunities to make a difference right from home.

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

Please watch this video about changes concerning Saturday's GOP Conventions:

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Qualifying ended this week, but on Saturday the spin began. The Democrats trumpeted the fact that they had qualified the most Democratic candidates since "Reconstruction."

Is the Democratic Party actually crowing about qualifying the most Democrats since the Democratic Party in Georgia started stripping away the rights of newly freed slaves to vote?

The AJC quickly picked up on the Democratic Party press release making a big deal about the 800+ Democrats who qualified across the state, especially the 187 who qualified for legislative seats, the most since 1996.

However, in 1996, Georgia Democrats ran the State House, State Senate, and had most of the statewide constitutional officers, and typically incumbents are not challenged in the primary.

While Republicans were winning the state at the federal level (Bob Dole would carry Georgia in 1996 after Bill Clinton carried it in 1992), we were still searching for relevancy at the state and local level.

And while the Democrats are challenging in every Congressional seat, the first time since 2008 that has happened, the GOP is taking on every Democratic member of Congress too, something that is not a common occurrence. What's more, over 1,500 Republicans qualified across Georgia for local, state, and federal office.

In Cobb, we did not shy away from challenging supposedly "safe" Democrats either with Jim Hickey taking on Erica "Publix" Thomas (should she win her primary) and Stephen George facing off against Democrat Michael Smith.

Then there is Rose Wing (HD-37) and Taryn Bowman (HD-40), both are challenging incumbents that flipped from red to blue in 2018. And while several Democrats are facing primary challenges in their Cobb legislative seats, the same is not so for our Republican General Assembly members, none of whom had primary challengers. There is a Democratic Primary to challenge Sen. Lindsey Tippins, there are also Democratic primaries in House Districts 35, 39, 42, and 46.

Locally, however, it was two countywide elected Republicans who saw themselves re-elected for four more years as neither State Court Clerk Angie Davis or Tax Commissioner Carla Jackson saw any challenge.

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

The GOP is looking for a few good candidates to be the ballot this fall!

If you ever wanted to run for office, this next week is your chance! If you missed the alert last week, here's nearly everything you need to know to qualify for the GOP ballot this week!

QUALIFYING begins at 9:00 AM on MARCH 2, 2020 and ends at 12:00 NOON on MARCH 6, 2020.

The Cobb County Republican Party will be open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Mon-Thu and Friday from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM for candidates to qualify. The phone number for the Cobb GOP office is  (770) 272-0458 .

Candidates may pay their qualifying fees by money order, cashiers check, or in cash.  Personal or campaign checks will not be accepted!

PARTISAN OFFICES:

The following  COUNTY  partisan offices qualify with the Cobb County Republican Party at Republican Party Headquarters, 799 Roswell Street NE, Marietta, GA 30060:

• Commission Chairman
• Clerk of State Court
• Sheriff
• Clerk of Superior Court
• Tax Commissioner
• County Commissioner, District 4
• County Commissioner, District 2
• County School Board (Districts 1, 3, 5 & 7)
• Surveyor

The following  FEDERAL & STATE  partisan offices qualify with one of the State parties at the Georgia Capital:

• U.S. Senate
• U. S. Representative (Congress) (All Districts)
• Public Service Commissioner (Districts 1 & 4)
• State Senator (All Districts)
• State Representative (All Districts)
• District Attorney

NONPARTISAN OFFICES:

The following COUNTY nonpartisan offices qualify with Cobb County Elections:

• State Court Judge (Posts 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 & 7)
• State Court Judge, Division II (Posts 2 & 5)
• Judge of the Probate Court
• Chief Magistrate Judge

The following STATE nonpartisan offices qualify with the Secretary of State:

• Supreme Court Justice (3 seats)
• Court of Appeals Judge (6 seats)
• Superior Court Judge (7 seats)

Candidates may use the following forms and bring them pre-filled out (BUT NOT PRE-SIGNED UNLESS NOTARIZED). All candidates must fill out the first form. Other candidates may be required to fill out the specific form for their office below.

The Cobb GOP will have a notary on site to notarize all documents.

• General Declaration of Candidacy and Affidavit (all candidates)
• State Court Clerk
• Superior Court Clerk
• Sheriff
• Tax Commissioner
• School Board

QUALIFYING FEES:

Fees must be paid with a cashiers check, money order, or cash. No personal or campaign checks will be accepted.

Click here for the qualifying fee schedule.

For more information on candidate qualifying, visit  https://www.cobbcounty.org/elections/candidates/qualifying-office

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party

This weekend, the Democratic Party further embraced socialism as the Nevada Caucuses gave Bernie Sanders yet another primary win on his road to the Democratic Party Nomination.

It shouldn't have been any surprise given the tepid applause the audience at the Democratic Debate this week gave to Michael Bloomberg and Amy Klobuchar when they defended capitalism on the debate stage. Clearly, the Democratic Party is poised to complete Barack Obama's fundamental transformation of America, a transformation that was only stymied when the GOP took control of Congress in 2011.

While I can write all day about the evils of socialism, I decided it would be better to let Gloria Álvarez ‏do it. I met Gloria at a Conservatives International Conference that I attended in May 2017 in Hollywood, FL.I was immediately impressed by her presentation and her story.

I hope you will watch and share this video.

Yours in Freedom,

Jason Shepherd

Chairman, Cobb County Republican Party