After weeks of taking shots from the blogosphere, Krishna decided enough was enough, saying not only do they “spew hatred” and spread lies, but Iowa’s anonymous bloggers also discourage good people from getting involved in politics.

The response from anonymous blogger Krusty Konservative was more laid back than one might expect, but every bit as unforgiving.

Gopal, I have not lied about your past; I have simply made sure people knew about it. Sorry you if you cannot accept the truth. You might be glad to know that I held back at times, because I wanted to keep the debate about your “candidacy” for chairman about the facts.

Another anonymous blogger at “In Flyover Country” took a more direct approach, saying the bloggers are more loyal to the state party than someone who would criticize it publicly.

Yes, we’re the ones going out and blasting the entire central committee.  We’re the ones name-calling in public of those people who would NEVER vote for us, and we’re bitter about it.  We’re the ones who got kicked off the SCC in 2000.  How could we be so blind.  You’re right, almighty Gopal.  We’re the big, bad BLOGGER PEOPLE!!!  Ooooooh….we’re so scary.

“In Flyover Country” also told it’s readers that Krishna announcing he was not a candidate is proof that…

… there is a God, er…holy cow, Buddha, or whatever…

Yikes.

Not surprisingly, those bloggers who put their names next to their words took a more measured approach to the news that Krishna was not a candidate for chair.

At his blog “HawkeyeGOP,” Republican State Central Committee member David Chung called the race for RPI chair “silly season,” saying he’ll be glad when it’s all over with.

And the call for Krishna’s ouster as party treasurer is hitting a fever pitch in each of the blogs’ comment sections, with most hoping he will get thrown off the State Central Committee altogether.

All this should make for an interesting meeting on Saturday. Unfortunately, the vote for chair and other leadership positions is not open to the public or the media. The party plans to unveil its new leader shortly after the meeting concludes at 12:30 p.m. in the RPI Headquarters, 621 E 9th St., Des Moines.

“I don’t think the party has seen the bottom,” he said. “We are waiting for others to fail so that we can succeed. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be, but that’s the way it’s working right now.”

Krishna told the Iowa Independent that in spite of rumors to the contrary he is not and has never been a candidate for chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa. This despite the fact that several members of the party’s State Central Committee view him as the favorite to win the position when the group meets on Saturday.

“I am not a candidate. I have never been a candidate,” he said.  “Talk to State Central Committee members. They cannot show a single e-mail or letter from me saying that I wanted their support or that I am a candidate. It’s just not true.”

Krishna said that while the position of chair is an important one, the way in which the State Central Committee is going about picking a chair is a disaster.

“The Central Committee has to have the spine to elect the best person they can,” he said. “They don’t.”

The race has deteriorated into a popularity contest, Krishna said.

“If we wanted to elect a chair on a popularity basis, we should elect the chair at the state convention,” he said. “The problem has been how the Central Committee thinks they have to pick from whoever wants to run. It should be the opposite. It is the responsibility of the Central Committee to go out and recruit the best person they can. It’s just like the board of directors of a corporation picking a new CEO. They go and get the best CEO they think can address the needs of the organization.”

Krishna also called into question the commitment of several Central Committee members, saying the seven members elected in April rarely ever come to meetings.

“How can they realize what needs to be done when they don’t even come to meetings? That makes a mockery of all the people who have been there before,” he said.

The Central Committee’s “lack of maturity” is one of the main reasons he is not running for chair, Krishna said.

Krishna also pointed the finger at Iowa’s conservative bloggers. He said they do little except “spew hatred” and spread lies. Krishna has been the target of attack from several conservative bloggers saying his time serving in RPI leadership during the 90s caused too much turmoil, a factor they believe disqualified him from taking the reins of the party again.

“How many good people are not running for office anymore because of the character assassination? Why would anyone who wants to do good subject themselves to all this harassment?” he said.

Ultimately, Krishna said he feels like he’s watching the party he’s worked to build since 1990, when he was first elected to the State Central Committee, being destroyed from within.

“You invest a lot of time and energy in something and you see it’s getting destroyed, you get mad,” he said. “A lot of people feel the way I do but are afraid to speak up. I’m not afraid. I will say what needs to be said.”

The Republican Party State Central Committee is expected to pick a new leader Jan. 10.

Several members of the party’s Central Committee said Gopal Krishna, who served as the party’s co-chairman in the late ‘90s and currently serves as its treasurer, and Danny Carroll, the former speaker pro tempore of the Iowa House, are both close to garnering the number of votes needed to win the seat when the committee convenes Jan. 10.

But enough of the 17 committee members remain undecided that the door is still open for another candidate.

“I’m not sure there is a clear front-runner right now,” said Jason Hutchinson, a member of the party’s State Central Committee.

“I know there are some members who see a couple front-runners right now, but I honestly don’t. I think it is still too early to be determined. There are still several candidates who can get there.”

The names that come up most often as other potential chair candidates are Matt Strawn, co-owner of the Iowa Barnstormers arena football team, and Paul Pate, former Iowa Secretary of State and mayor of Cedar Rapids.

Several committee members said the voting process could be long and drawn out, with no candidate easily getting the majority needed to win the position.

Committee member Isaiah McGee, who also serves as a councilman in Waukee, said he is pleased with all the candidates but hasn’t heard enough from any one of them to make a decision. Additionally, he said if no one emerges who fits the qualifications the party needs, the process should start over.

“If at the end of the day, no candidate meets all the qualifications that we need as a party chairman then I think we should go back to the drawing board and keep looking,” McGee said.

Every candidate has pluses and minuses, McGee said, and if the vote goes to multiple ballots, it could be anyone’s race.

Hutchinson agrees, saying the committee members he has spoken with are open to any candidate, even if they say they already have a preference.

“A lot can change before we finally vote,” he said. “Once we see everyone’s plan for the party’s future, that could change everything. I personally remain completely undecided, and I think a majority of members feel the same way.”

Central Committee will host a forum from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Dec. 27 at GOP headquarters for the public to meet the candidates for chairman and co-chairman. But McGee said many members won’t be able to attend due to the meeting being scheduled so close to the holidays.

Party seeks unity

Several common themes emerged in conversations with committee members about what they are looking for in the next chair, the first and foremost being an ability to unify a fractured party.

Moderates within the party are arguing that the RPI’s drift to the right has hurt party in recent elections. Social conservatives counter that a party thrives when it sticks to its core principles, and in Iowa the GOP has been defeated of late because it has forsaken those values.

Each of the declared candidates seems likely to appeal to the social conservative wing of the party, but each has also expressed a desire to make the party more inclusive.

Hutchinson said the ability of the next chair to bring everyone under the same tent would determine the party’s success for years to come.

“This has become a fractionalized party,” Hutchinson said. “The last two cycles haven’t been particularly kind to Republicans, and when that happens, frustration develops. It tends to make us bicker back and forth. I’m looking for someone who will be able to unite us in a common mission and push forward. I don’t think the divide is as big as it has been made out to be.”

Krishna, the consummate party insider, has become a lightning rod for criticism from the conservative blogosphere, with most critics pointing to his tenure as co-chair, when his fellow Republicans accused him of trying to undermine the party’s leadership. Krishna is dismissive of the bloggers, saying they are trying to create a rift in the party.

But every candidate has his downside, McGee said. The question is what can they bring to the party, and that is what has to be measured, he said.

The party has fallen behind its rival in use of technology, Hutchinson said, which is another thing a party chair must address.

“But technology goes beyond simply having a Facebook page,” McGee said. “You should be able to answer why having a Facebook page is important. How can things like Twitter help us advance our party?”

Fundraising ability will also be key, Hutchinson said.

“Labor injected a lot of money into this last election cycle, so we have got to fund-raise heavily to make up for that advantage the Democrats have,” he said.

With a gubernatorial contest just around the corner, Hutchinson said it is important for a strong leader to be in place in order to ensure the GOP has a viable shot at taking back Terrace Hill.

“Right now our activists, our donors, even our leaders within the party are kind of waiting and looking for leadership to emerge,” he said. “I’m sensing there is a lot of energy out there to move the party forward, but everyone is waiting for a leader to move us forward.”

Ideology aside, the next chair has to be someone who can win elections, McGee said.

“That might be the most important thing,” he said. “You can be against abortion all you want, but you have to be in a position to do something about it.  You can be against the tax policy all you want, but you actually have to be in a position to change the policy. Winning is important, and it’s critical to find someone who understands how to win in the future.”

The Republican Party of Iowa is selecting a new chairman to replace Stewart Iverson.

While the party’s bylaws state that the State Central Committee vote on the chairmanship is to take place in January, some believe the matter could be taken up Saturday when the group holds its December meeting.

Republicans have already selected new leadership in both the House and the Senate, leaving the state party chairmanship as one of the final pieces to the puzzle in determining the future of a GOP that has fallen on hard times in Iowa.

Former Speaker Pro Tempore of the Iowa House Danny Carroll confirmed to the Iowa Independent that he is running for the position. Carroll served six terms in the Iowa House before being defeated by Eric Palmer in 2006. He was defeated a second time by Palmer in November.

“I saw an opportunity to offer my experience over the last 20 years in elected politics,” he said.

Carroll declined to comment further, saying he wants to respect the process of the State Central Committee.

State Central Committee member Mathew Randall also confirmed to the Iowa Independent that he wants to be the next RPI chairman. Randall is vice president of operations for Randall Corp. in Ames. He also declined to comment further, saying he did not wish to alienate any of the other candidates or his fellow Central Committee members.

Polk County Republican Party Chairman Ted Sporer has made his intentions to run for state chairman public on several occasions, both on his blog and on the radio program of Christian conservative Steve Deace. Sporer did not respond to several requests for comment.

Paul Pate, who has previously served as Iowa’s secretary of state and as mayor of Cedar Rapids, announced his desire to serve as RPI chair in an e-mail to several Central Committee members and county chairs. Included in that e-mail was his outline for “victory in 2010.”

Another candidate for the position is Christopher Reed, who ran an unsuccessful campaign to unseat U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin. Reed, who owns a telecommunications business in Marion, said several Central Committee members have contacted him about running, and while he is interested and will serve if elected, he will not be actively campaigning for the position.

State GOP Treasurer Gopal Krishna has been the center of several rumors saying he is seeking the position. Some conservative bloggers, like Grant Young and anonymous blogger Krusty Konservative, had suggested Krishna and Sporer had partnered to try to push a vote on the chairman position before January.

Krishna told the Iowa Independent that there is no truth to the rumor, adding that the bloggers are trying to divide the party.

“We can express opinions without bashing people,” he said. “I try not to pay attention to them.”

Krishna added that while several members of the State Central Committee have approached him about running, he has not decided whether he will enter the race.

“Right now it’s too premature for me to even talk about it,” he said.

Carroll, Randall, Reed and Krishna all said they believe the vote on the chairmanship should follow the party’s bylaws and take place in January.