Mass. Republican loses seat on national panel

Longtime Republican operative and former White House political director Ron Kaufman lost a narrow vote Saturday to remain the party’s national committeeman from Massachusetts, the state party chairperson said.

Brad Wyatt of Boylston will take over as the state party’s national committeeman after the Republican National Convention this summer, Wyatt said in a brief interview on Saturday, shortly after the Republican State Committee met and voted.

Kaufman didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. The 37-35 vote was first reported by Politico, and state GOP chair Amy Carnevale confirmed it to the Globe.

The state party’s national committeeman, committeewoman, and chair serve as voting members on the national party. Janet Fogarty was reelected as national committeewoman, she confirmed.

Kaufman, of Quincy, worked in George H.W. Bush’s White House and advised Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential bid. He later served as the Republican National Committee’s treasurer and worked as a lobbyist. He didn’t seek re-election to the RNC post in 2022.

In a phone interview, Wyatt said he appreciates “all the work Ron Kaufman has put in” to the Republican Party over the past few decades. Wyatt said he pitched his business and tech savvy as he ran for the position. He said the party needs to become more effective at getting out its messages around immigration, taxes, and government funding.

“We want to compete better, and I think tech is the way forward to winning elections,” Wyatt said.

Massachusetts has long been deep blue, but Republicans have lost further ground in recent years. The Massachusetts Republican Party’s website lists four state senators and 23 representatives — out of 40 and 160, respectively. The state has had multiple centrist Republican governors in the past few decades, including Romney, but Democrat Maura Healey handily won the top office after popular Republican Charlie Baker decided not to run for re-election in 2022.

Carnevale took over as state party chair in 2023 following years of losses, the accumulation of hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, and the party ending up in the crosshairs of state investigations.

Carnevale was ratified as chair Saturday by a 47-25 vote, she said in a statement, adding that the state party is “at its strongest point in years.”

“I look forward to the committee advancing as a cohesive unit as we move forward to secure victories for Republicans and put an end to the Democratic supermajority’s reckless spending, back door legislating, and exacerbation of the migrant crisis,” she said in the statement.