Editorial: Is Westmoreland County GOP being fair to all candidates?

Why would a candidate not be expected to support his own campaign?

Westmoreland County commissioner candidate Paul Kosko of Hempfield hasn’t gotten in line with the county Republican Committee, and it is costing him his involvement in the party.

In February, the committee announced its endorsement of a full slate of incumbents for reelection in county offices. The conference where that happened occurred before people could even circulate petitions to become candidates. Kosko announced his own candidacy a week later.

Two weeks ago, committee chair Bill Bretz filed a lawsuit to remove Kosko from the ballot for failure to properly file financial disclosures with the county’s chief clerk. Common Pleas Judge Jim Silvis ruled against that and allowed both Kosko and another GOP commissioner candidate, John Ventre, to remain on the ballot.

Now, Kosko has been kicked off the committee. His offense? Actively campaigning against incumbent commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew, the committee’s endorsed picks.

“It’s literally the one rule we have: Don’t work against endorsed candidates,” Republican committee Chairman Bill Bretz said. “You are free to run for office. But, if you are, we ask you step away from the committee.”

That’s fair. In reality, it seems like the lack of support might make it uncomfortable to stay on the committee.

But, at the same time, it doesn’t seem appropriate to make someone the bad guy for the simple act of stepping up to participate in public service.

That is especially so given that this is not the norm.

Aside from the fact that the endorsements came so early, there is the fact that they came at all. It has been more than a decade since the committee has endorsed candidates in the primary.

Party politics has created gridlock and enmity in Washington and Harrisburg that has made it all but impossible to do anything that doesn’t split along Democratic and Republican lines. Now the same is happening inside the parties as factions fight for control.

Is that what Westmoreland County needs?