Washington GOP begins delegate elections; delegates complain about ballot lists and slate changes

Washington State Republican delegates spent a long portion of the morning introducing themselves as regional delegates and alternates bound for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, then moved to elect 10 at-large delegates and 10 alternates.

Delegation chairs were instructed to collect small ballots for the at-large votes and to return them to the tellers table for counting. Several delegates complained that the on-screen candidate list was hard to read from the back of the hall and that delegation chairs did not all have hard-copy lists; the chair said each delegation head should have a hard copy and that a reformatted list would be posted on the screens and re-circulated electronically.

Delegates also raised concerns about changes to the Trump-endorsed slate. A Trump-campaign representative clarified substitutions on the slate, stating that Mike Werner had moved up to a delegate spot, Marlisa Melzer (also spelled "Marilisa" in parts of the transcript) was added as an alternate, Jennifer Flores would replace Billy Sebastiani, and Betty Anderson would replace Don Benton as an elector. Delegates requested clearer documentation and additional printed copies to complete write-in ballots for 10 names out of a long list.

As ballots were being collected, delegates debated whether to take a full lunch break or a working lunch. The convention adopted an amended motion allowing delegates to get lunch and return but keeping a 20-minute formal break later (the chair said the 20-minute break would occur after the teller collection of delegate ballots).

Why it matters: The at-large delegates will represent Washington at the national convention; confusion about lists, last-minute slate substitutions and ballot visibility raised procedural fairness concerns for some delegates and counties. The transcript records questions to the chair, the chair’s instructions about hard copies, and clarifications from the Trump slate representative; it also records motions to modify the schedule so platform debate could continue without losing quorum, which the parliamentarian later found out of order.

Next steps: Delegation chairs continued bringing ballots to the tellers and the count proceeded in the room; the platform and resolutions would be considered after the lunch interval as directed by the chair.