Adopted March 10, 2012

Preamble
The Republican Party of Minnesota Senate District 61 welcomes the participation of all citizens of Minnesota Senate District 61 who are concerned with the implementation of honest, efficient, and responsive government. The party believes in the equality of all, as stated in the Declaration of Independence. Therefore, it is the party committed to equal representation and opportunity for all and preservation of the rights of each individual. It is the purpose of this constitution to ensure that the party provides for full participation with equal opportunity for all citizens of Minnesota Senate District 61 regardless of age, race, sex, religion, or social or economic status.

Article I — Name
The name of this organization shall be the Senate District 61 Republicans, the basic political organization unit, hereinafter referred to as ‘the BPOU.’

Article II — Purpose
Section 1: The purpose and objectives of the BPOU shall be the maintenance and development of good government according to the Constitution and laws of the United States and the State of Minnesota through the promotion within Senate District 61 of the purposes and objectives of the National Republican Party and the Republican Party of Minnesota.
Section 2: The purposes and duties of the BPOU shall include those imposed by law and custom upon official party committees. In addition, the BPOU shall:
A) Organize or cause to be organized each precinct in Senate District 61;
B) Identify and encourage potential Republican candidates in Senate District 61:
C) Assist in conducting campaigns for the election of endorsed Republican candidates for public office; and
D) Administer the affairs of the Party within the BPOU.

Article III — Membership
The membership of this BPOU shall be composed of all citizens eligible to vote in Senate District 61 who wish to be affiliated with the Republican Party and who support the purposes and objectives of the National Republican Party.

Article IV — Management and Structure
Section 1: The management of the BPOU shall rest with the Senate District 61 Full Committee subject to the direction of the State Central Committee, the State Executive Committee, the Fifth Congressional District Committee, the BPOU Convention, the State Party Constitution, the Senate District 61 Constitution, and applicable federal and state laws.
Section 2: The Senate District 61 Full Committee shall be composed of the BPOU Chair, Deputy Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, all precinct chairs or their appointed representatives, two (2) Vice Chairs [of which one shall be elected by the delegates and seated alternates from House District 61A and one shall be elected by the delegates and seated alternates from House District 61B] the immediate past Chair and all elected Republican officials residing within the boundaries of Senate District 61. Any member holding more than one position shall be limited to one vote.
Section 3: The duties of the Full Committee shall be as follows:
A) The BPOU Chair shall conduct BPOU Full Committee meetings. The BPOU Deputy Chair shall conduct meetings in the Chair’s absence. The Chair shall appoint committees with the approval of the Full Committee and coordinate the activities of the two Vice Chairs. The Chair shall also be an ex-officio member of all BPOU committees.
B) Publicly elected officials shall be encouraged to attend Full Committee meetings. Because their attendance at these meetings is not required, their position shall not be included in the quorum count.
C) The Secretary shall keep minutes of meetings, be responsible for written correspondence with the members of the Full Committee, and delegates and alternates to BPOU conventions and other correspondence that may be necessary.
D) The Treasurer shall be responsible for all BPOU monies, keep financial records, disburse money as authorized by the Full Committee, prepare and submit all reports to the State of Minnesota as required by law, and in conjunction with the Executive Committee (as found in Section 5 of this Article) submit an annual budget to the Full Committee.
E) The two Vice Chairs from HD 61A and HD 61B shall be responsible for communicating with the precinct officers in the precincts in their respective House Districts. The Vice Chairs shall work with the precinct officers to help the precinct officers carry out their duties including assisting Republican endorsed candidates running for (re)election, finding and recruiting more Republicans to work in the precinct, assist with door knocking and communicating with residents in the precinct. The Vice Chair shall identify those precincts where the precinct officer(s) are not active or have resigned and help recruit new precinct officers or precinct captains.
Section 4: The BPOU financial records shall be maintained in an orderly fashion by the BPOU Treasurer.
A) All finance records may be reviewed at all meetings of the Full Committee.
B) After the BPOU Convention in each odd-numbered year, the Full Committee shall designate the financial institution to be used as a depository of BPOU funds.
C) All financial institutional signature cards shall be signed by the BPOU Chair and the Treasurer.
D) All disbursements shall be by check written by the Treasurer, or if the Treasurer is not available, by the BPOU Chair.
E) All funds coming to the BPOU from sources permitted by law shall be deposited in the BPOU’s account(s).
Section 5: There shall be an Executive Committee composed of the four officers, the immediate past BPOU chair, and the two Vice Chairs and shall meet at the call of the chair. The BPOU chair shall preside over all Executive Committee meetings and in the absence of the chair, the Deputy Chair shall preside. The Executive Committee shall have the responsibility of managing the BPOU when the Full Committee is not meeting and shall prepare a budget for the Full Committee. The Executive Committee shall prepare a plan to implement party activities and find, build, and elect candidates in December of each year and present that plan to the Full Committee for amendment and approval in January of each year.

Article V — BPOU Elections
Section 1: The BPOU Chair, Deputy Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, two (2) Vice Chairs of which one shall be from HD 61A and one from HD 61B, delegates and alternates to the State Central Committee, and representatives and alternates to the Fifth Congressional District Full Committee shall be elected to two year terms by the most recently elected precinct delegates and seated alternates who still reside in the precinct at the odd-year BPOU Convention.
Section 2: Officers of each precinct shall consist of a Chair, Vice Chair and a Secretary, elected to a two year term at the even-numbered year General Caucus, in compliance with State statutes. In the event that a precinct fails to elect the officers at this caucus, the BPOU Executive Committee may appoint individuals to fill the vacancies in that precinct.
Section 3: A nominating committee may be appointed by the BPOU Executive Committee with approval of the Full Committee in advance of all BPOU conventions for the purpose of compiling names of candidates who wish to run for the various positions to be voted on at the convention. Nominations from the floor shall be allowed. The nomination committee shall not screen candidates, make recommendations or rank the candidates, nor shall any other committee. In the interest of an open process the convention body shall be presented a list of all who wish to run for each of the various positions without bias.

Article VI — Meetings
Section 1: Requirements:
A) Full Committee Meetings: The Full Committee may establish a calendar of regular meetings, provided that a written notice is given to the members of the Full Committee.
B) Special Full Committee Meetings: The Full Committee shall meet at the call of the Chair, at the request of the Executive Committee, or at the request of any seven (7) members of the Committee. Three (3) Days’ notice by mail, electronic communication, or by telephone shall be provided to members of the Committee for each meeting.
C) Quorums: A quorum shall be 30% of seated members of the Full Committee for the purpose of transacting BPOU business and shall be a majority for conducting business in the Executive Committee.
Section 2: The most recent issue of ‘Robert’s Rules of Order, Revised’ shall govern the proceedings of all meetings of the Full and Executive Committees.

Article VII — BPOU Conventions
Section 1: BPOU Conventions shall be held each year during the period and for the purposes designated by the State Executive Committee, the State Central Committee, or the Fifth Congressional District Committee. The time and place of these conventions shall be determined by the Full Committee. Special BPOU Conventions shall be held at the call of the aforementioned groups, or at the direction of the majority of the Full Committee, provided that a minimum of ten Days’ written, electronic, or telephone notice shall be given to each precinct delegate and alternate.
A) If events warrant a Special Election to public office, an emergency Endorsing Convention may be held at the call of the BPOU Chair, or at the direction of the majority of the Executive Committee. A written notice of not less than five Days’ duration shall be given to all delegates and alternates. Such convention shall be held for the sole purpose of endorsing a candidate for office.
Section 2: The BPOU Convention shall be composed of delegates and alternates selected at the most recent Republican Party precinct caucuses held within Senate District 61 and who are presently residing in the precinct that elected them. The ratio to allocated delegates shall be uniform throughout the BPOU. The credentials committee shall seat all duly elected delegates of each precinct who are present. In the event no delegates are present from a precinct, the credentials committee shall seat elected alternates from that precinct. Vacancies shall be filled according to the following procedure after the adoption of the preliminary credentials committee report and after the adoption of the rules committee report:
A) The precinct chair shall appoint alternates in place of delegates who are not present. If the precinct had established a rank order of the alternates to be appointed as delegates, the precinct chair will follow that rank order in the appointment of alternates. If the precinct chair is not present, the majority of delegates from that precinct shall proceed to fill the vacancies. If there is no majority opinion of the delegates from that precinct or if no delegates are present, the credentials committee shall fill the vacancies in that precinct. If there is a rank order of the alternates, then the majority of the delegates from that precinct or the credentials committee shall follow the rank order to fill the delegate vacancies.
B) If a precinct has any vacancies which cannot be filled by an alternate from the same precinct, the vacancy will remain.
Section 3: Delegates and alternates to the Republican State and Congressional District Conventions shall be elected in accordance with the laws of the State of Minnesota, as well as the State Republican Constitution, and shall continue as such until their successors are elected. The BPOU Convention delegates and seated alternates shall elect their State Convention and Fifth Congressional District Convention delegates and alternates at the even year BPOU convention. Alternates shall be ranked for seating purposes at these conventions.
Section 4: A motion to endorse will be in order at any BPOU Convention in the years when there are public elections. This motion must carry by a majority vote.
A) The BPOU Convention may endorse a candidate for office of State Senator. Endorsement shall be by sixty (60) percent or more vote and such vote shall be greater than or equal to at least a majority of the registered delegates and seated alternates at the convention as established by the final report of the credentials committee.
B) A Sub-Committee of a BPOU Convention or a separate convention of the delegates from State House Districts 61A or 61B may each endorse a candidate for State Representative. However, if such an endorsement is by a separate convention, the agenda of such a convention shall be limited only to the endorsement of a candidate. Endorsement shall be by sixty (60) percent or more vote and such vote shall be greater than or equal to at least a majority of the registered delegates and seated alternates at the convention as established by the final report of the credentials committee.

Article VIII — Vacancies and Removal
Section 1: Vacancies in precinct offices may be filled by appointment of the Executive Committee or, if so directed, by the elected delegates and alternates elected at the most recent precinct caucus. Should vacancies occur in the officers or vice chairs of the Full Committee, replacements shall be appointed by the Full Committee.
Section 2: An officer, vice chair, or the immediate past chair of the Full Committee may be removed from office by a two-thirds vote at any meeting of the seated committee members, provided that the person considered for removal has been furnished with a written notice of the charges that may warrant removal at least fourteen days prior to the meeting of the Full Committee. Further, the person considered for removal shall be entitled to respond to these charges in person or in writing prior to the vote to remove.
Section 3: If a member of the Full Committee, other than precinct chairs, is absent without cause from more than three (3) consecutive meetings, this person shall be subject to the removal provisions outlined in Section 2 of this Article. If precinct chairs are absent without cause from more than three (3) consecutive meetings, the BPOU chair in conjunction with the Vice Chair in the House District in which the precinct is located should consult with the precinct chair and ask if the precinct chair wants to resign his or her position in the precinct.
Section 4: It is the duty of all Full Committee members to support Republican endorsed candidates. Should any member of the Full Committee actively and/or publicly campaign against a Republican endorsed candidate, that member shall be removed from the Full Committee in accordance with Section 2 of this Article.

Article IX — Dissolution
In the event that State Legislative District lines are redrawn, the Full Committee shall have the power to dissolve the BPOU by a two-Thirds’ majority vote.

Article X — Amendments
This Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds’ majority vote of the delegates present at any BPOU Convention, provided that the proposed amendments be first referred to a duly-appointed Constitution Committee, and that the Official Call indicates that constitutional amendments will be considered.