Politico’s Ben Smith reports that Roger Villere, chairman of the Louisiana Republican party, has announced his bid for co-chair of the Republican National Committee. Villere is eligible for the position only if a woman — that is, either Maria Cino or Ann Wagner — wins the chairmanship, due to the RNC’s rules.
A few days ago, Villere spoke to RNC Watch about his candidacy. He said he had narrowed his choice for chair down to Cino and Wagner — an obvious move. “I think both ladies would be great. They both offer a different set of skills,” Villere noted.
He added that both candidates were supportive of his decision to run: “They both said they were happy I put my name in there, and both of them have a lot of friends of mine supporting them. I got a lot of calls from people.”
First Read had reported that Gary Emineth, former chairman of the North Dakota GOP, was running as well. A phone call to the candidate was not returned.