Each state elects one man and one woman to serve as their representatives to the RNC. To view Minnesota’s current RNC representatives, click here. These are important and dynamic positions. Please read below to learn more about these positions.

The RNC details the role and responsibilities of these two positions in its member handbook. Please see excerpts from the 2023 handbook below:

The Role of a Republican National Committee Member: Members of the Republican National Committee all bring unique and valuable experience to the Committee and pledge to serve as ambassadors for the Party. As such, Members should be engaged, behave with civility, make decisions based on the merit of issues, and act honestly, transparently, and ethically. Committee Members should strive to treat each other and RNC staff with respect as all work together to accomplish the goals of the organization.

It is the responsibility of an RNC Member to serve as a communicator of information, ideas and resources to state party members, candidates and campaigns at all levels. In order to fully accomplish this task, the National Committeeman, National Committeewoman and State Chairman need to act as a team. The overall public image of a National Committee Member has an effect on the image of the Republican Party. The National Committeeman, Committeewoman, and State Chairman are looked to as leaders, but must also be able to determine when and where to act in the official capacity as a RNC Member. A National Committee Member should be flexible, articulate and understanding, yet firm in their beliefs and totally committed to the Republican Party. As a leader in the Republican Party, the primary role of a National Committee Member is to help Republican candidates win elections on the local, state and national level.

Additionally, Members should not gain personal or commercial benefit, whether financial or otherwise, from their involvement with the Republican National Committee.

Essential Functions – National Level: On a National Committee level, the essential function of RNC Members is to elect the Chairman, CoChairman, Treasurer and Secretary of the Republican National Committee and create and maintain national party policies through The Rules of the Republican Party, the Republican Party Platform and Member-submitted resolutions. RNC Members should attend all meetings at the state and national levels and stay informed to communicate updates.

Additionally, Members can serve on committees by being elected or appointed, depending on the position and committee. These committees help govern and guide the Republican National Committee to accomplishing its goals. These committees include but are not limited to: Standing Committee on Rules, Standing Committee on Resolutions, Standing Budget Committee, and Executive Committee. Per Rule 10(c), the chairman of the Republican National Committee, with the approval of the Republican National Committee, may appoint other such committees and assistants as he or she deems necessary. Whenever such committees are appointed, they shall consist of a chairman and an equal number of men and women. Furthermore, Members can be elected to serve as a regional vice chairman, who shall preside at all meetings of their respective regions. Committee positions are mostly elected on a regional basis.

Essential Functions – State and Local Level: On a state and local level, National Committee Members serve as leaders of the Party. With this leadership position comes great responsibility. RNC Members will need to be prepared to serve in a number of different roles: advisor, implementer, fundraiser, moderator, cheerleader, counselor, activist, and motivator. RNC Members should also be prepared to act as spokespersons for the national committee and respective state party. While the importance of the role you play and scope of responsibilities you will have can’t simply be described in a manual, some suggested state and local guidelines are listed below:

• Attend all local RNC events.
• Deliver the RNC message to the state committee.
• Ensure that the state party is utilizing information and resources available through the RNC.
• Meet often with the leaders of the state and local parties.
• Communicate with RNC Member Services & your Regional Political Director (RPD).
• Act as a moderator – internal disputes are inevitable, but part of your role as an RNC Member is to facilitate and eliminate disputes.
• Help implement the programs of the national committee in your state.
• Assist in the development and implementation of state party programs.
• Be willing to travel, give speeches, and do local media to deliver your state party and RNC messages.
• Maintain a presence and be involved in state and local activities, such as executive committee meetings, district caucuses, county Lincoln Day dinners, etc.
• Serve on the state finance committee and assist in fundraising – including donating yourself, if possible.
• Serve as a surrogate when needed and campaign for state and local candidates.
• Communicate with grassroots activists and actively recruit new volunteers.

Terms of Office: The term of office for National Committee Members are as follows:
        (a) National committeemen and national committeewomen shall serve from the adjournment of the national convention until the adjournment of the following national convention. While newly elected members may be ratified simultaneously, for seniority purposes, newly elected committee persons shall be considered ratified in order of the date of their individual election.
        (b) The duly elected and acting chairman of each state Republican Party shall be a member of the Republican National Committee during his or her term in office.

As described above, serving as the National Committeeman or woman is a significant investment of time, energy, and financial resources. Timewise, the Committeeman and woman are expected to attend numerous BPOU, CD, State Party, and RNC events each month and year. They also serve on the state exec board with meets at least once a month in Edina. Financially, the Committeeman and woman typically spend between $10,000 – $15,000 each year travelling to attend MN events, national sub-committee meetings, and national RNC meetings and conventions. The Committeeman and woman have also historically raised significant amounts of money for the state party. Whether through a program like “Pennies for the Party” which raised hundreds of thousands of dollars through small donations, or the Elephant Club which regularly raises tens of thousands of dollars each year, the Committeeman and woman are expected to invest their time and financial resources into financially supporting the State Party and growing the Party’s base of donors.

The national committeeman and woman are elected by the State Central Committee and each serve four year terms. Below are the pertinent Bylaws from Article II (“State Central Committee”) surrounding their elections. To read the Bylaws in their entirety, click here.

        Section 5. The State Central Committee shall meet to elect Party Officers as set forth in the Constitution. The Party shall post the job description for each open office on the Party website and the timelines, process, and requirements for applying for each open office, including.

                              A. A petition with the signatures of at least thirty (30) State Central Delegates committed to vote for this candidate on the first ballot. No Delegate may sign more than one (1) petition for each open position. If a Delegate signs more than one (1) nominating petition in the same race (e.g., two (2) Chair candidates), their signature will be voided on each nominating petition for that race.

                            B. An application and/or a questionnaire to be posted on the Party website. If no application or questionnaire is posted on the Party website, each candidate shall submit a resume of their qualifications including their past professional and political activities; and

                          C. Any additional requirements that may be decided by a majority vote of the State Executive Committee shall be posted on the Party website no later than thirty (30) days prior to the State Central Committee meeting.

      Section 6. Prior to the State Central Committee meeting each candidate shall be interviewed by the Nominations Committee. The Nominations Committee shall be composed of the Congressional District chairs or appointees, and a committee chair appointed by the Chair. The Nominations Committee shall rate each candidate as “qualified,” “qualified with reservations” or “unqualified.” The Nominations Committee shall present its report to the State Central Committee meeting of each remaining candidate.

This year, in 2024, both our Committeeman and woman are up for reelection at the State Central Committee meeting on May 16th. These are the only two open party officer positions at the May SCC meeting. For more details about that meeting and our state convention, click here. Per the Bylaws above, those who are interested in running for re-election or to replace one of our current RNC members should be aware of the following information, to-do items, and deadlines:

• The timeline for applying for National Committeeman and woman does not have an official start date; however, candidates must be publicly announced and have their resume submitted to Nominations Committee Chair Vicki Ernst at [email protected] before 11:59 PM on Friday, April 19th. Update on 4/19: Chair Ernst will take resumes past the deadline as long as candidates turn them in 48 hours before their nominations committee interview.  
• Once incumbents and candidates have publicly announced and submitted their resume to Chair Ernst, she will arrange a time for them to meet with the Nominations Committee to be interviewed before May 16th.
• If incumbents or candidates wish to receive a list of SCC delegates and alternates, they should email the Party’s executive director at [email protected] to request a list agreement. Once that is signed and returned, the executive director will send them the SCC list to be used for purposes of this campaign only. Upon election, the Committeeman and woman can sign a new list agreement to continue their correspondence with a broader list of MN Republicans.
• There are no additional requirements (than those set out in the Bylaws) to run for National Committeeman and woman this year, aside from believing in the principles of the Party and being willing to complete the requirements of the job above. The only requirements are that they submit a resume and petition of 30 signatures to Chair Ernst.
• Candidates and incumbents must gather their 30 signatures and turn them into Chair Ernst via email before 11:59 PM on May 5th.
• Any questions about the position itself should be directed to State Party Chairman David Hann at [email protected]. Any questions about the application/campaign process should be directed to Chair Ernst at [email protected].

Thank you for consideration to serve in this important position, and thank you for your commitment to the Party, our growth, and our success!