Evie Axdahl, the Republican national committeewoman from Minnesota, has endorsed Maria Cino for chair of the RNC. A founding member of the Republican National Conservative Caucus, Axdahl cites Cino’s social conservatism as a reason for her support. In a letter to the RNC, Axdahl writes:
“Despite the very significant challenges the RNC faces at this time, we are fortunate as a party to have such a diverse range of candidates to choose among to lead us through them and on to victory. Your evaluation of those candidates may still be ongoing, but I have decided on the one I think has the best skills and experience to lead our party: Maria Cino.”
“Maria has raised more money, successfully managed more party organizations and won more elections than any of the other candidates. She has raised and managed hundreds of millions of dollars for national committees, state parties and candidates and has earned the respect and trust of major donors in the process. She created the modern-day victory program and managed one of the best political conventions ever. She turned a nearly-bankrupt NRCC into a $100 million juggernaut that propelled our party into the majority in the House for the first time in 40 years.”
“In addition to having the skills and experience we need, Maria also has the conservative values we all share. She’s a fiscal conservative in theory and in practice, spending as much as it took to win but no more. She’s a life-long Catholic who is ardently pro-life and a supporter of traditional family structure and values.”
“I encourage you to support her bid to become Chairman of the RNC.”
UPDATE: Axdahl joins Priscilla Rakestraw, the Republican national committeewoman from Delaware, who was the first to endorse Cino. Rakestraw, the currently longest-serving member of the RNC, touts Cino’s management experience in her letter to the committee:
”Now, some may feel that it is important to elect one of our colleagues from the RNC. Although Maria is not an RNC member, as former Deputy Chairman of the RNC, as CEO of the 2008 Republican National Convention, and as Executive Director of the NRCC, she has more knowledge, familiarity, experience, and the proven ability to raise millions of dollars. Maria has the trust and confidence of Republican donors, elected officials, and operatives across the country. Those are the measuring sticks that I used in my decision-making process. I urge you to measure Maria Cino’s experience and proven ability against the urgent – no, critical – needs of the Republican National Committee.”
Rakestraw and Axdahl are the only two members to have publicly endorsed Cino so far.