Fresh activists can revive GOP, local leaders say

By David Brown
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, June 15, 2008

Local Republicans are hoping an effort to recruit more young people will reinvigorate the party’s base in Allegheny County.

A similar effort in Westmoreland County is credited with boosting GOP numbers by nearly 30,000 voters over the past decade.

The work of young activists helped put the party’s finances back in the black and will be the key to reviving the party, said Allegheny County Republican Chairman Jim Roddey, who six months ago took the helm of an organization that was battered and broke. A push to expand the base among young people is a critical goal.

“We can’t keep riding the same horses year after year,” said Roddey, 75, of Oakmont. “I’m doing this for one more year. When I leave, I want to see a lot of fresh faces and a lot of new energy.”

Standouts among those shaping the new face of the party in Allegheny County, according to Roddey and others, are:

• Justin Lokay, 27, a two-term councilman for East McKeesport and chairman of the county Young Republicans.

• Meghan Jones, 33, of Bethel Park, an attorney who volunteers her communication skills for GOP causes.

• Tom Baker, 29, of Greenfield, an author and youth activist who recently was elected vice chairman of the Southwestern Republican Caucus and chairman of the state Young Republicans.

• Jason Davidek, 29, a Fawn supervisor in the fifth year of a six-year term.

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