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PWCDC Gets Their Iron Lady
By Greg L | 3 February 2007 | PWCDC | 5 Comments
I see from Craig Vitter that the Potomac News has reported on the leadership exodus from the Prince William Democratic Committee, albeit with the article leaving more questions than answers. The article reveals that Earnestine Jenkins, wife of Neabsco Supervisor John Jenkins, has assumed leadership of the PWCDC, a move that effectively super-glues the leadership of the PWCDC to the local elected officials, and sets the PWCDC up for some thoroughly terrific internal battles in the near future. The committee is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of the local elected officials.
Earnestine Jenkins is one of those people who are often referred to as “a force to be reckoned with”. Strong willed and completely self-assured, she believes she knows what is right for the PWCDC and is unlikely to tolerate much dissent. Former Chairman Vic Bras spent a lot of time trying to play cat herder, trying to bring various factions into some degree of accord and massaging the tender sensibilities of some, and actually did a pretty good job given the enormous difficulty of the task. Earnestine is not of this mold — she will likely reign with an iron grip, tolerate little in the way of dissent, and compel compliance to her vision, methodology, and desires.
Mrs. Jenkins is definitely of the traditional county democrat mold, which was once described to me as being part of the “segregationist democrats”, which is perhaps an overstatement, but representative of how other philosophical factions at least seem to regard them. The disconnect between this philosophical group and the younger, more liberal activists who make up about half of the committee membership is pretty significant. How the crowd from the Bull Run Universalist Unitarians and other gay rights and “social justice” crusaders react to the leadership of iron-fisted “segregationist democrats” absent the moderating leadership which has now departed isn’t that hard to predict. Lots of folks aren’t going to be happy at all.
This might actually end up being a positive thing for the PWCDC. Provided the committee can hold itself together, this politically-savvy, determined leadership which actually knows how to win elections might actually be able to rebuild the committee and start advancing candidates who aren’t tied to the hard-left liberal “social justice” agenda. That will take time, if it’s possible at all. And it’s likely going to require a different set of activists.
Winning in Prince William County requires good candidates, policy positions that are popular with the voters, and plenty of dedicated activists willing to work hard to get candidates elected. Right now the candidates have been sub-par, the positions have been dubious, and now the activists are at risk of departing en masse. Earnestine Jenkins and the rest of the PWCDC leadership have a lot of work to do and lots of challenges to overcome. What they don’t have is a lot of time to put this all together.
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Greg, the folks that left were far from providing the “moderating leadership” you mentioned. If anything Vic ruled the committee with an iron grip and often it was his way or the highway. Craig and yourself should talk to all parties involved to get the whole story and not just one side.
Anonymous, interesting. I do not believe I have written anything about the party leadership beyond the basic facts of the resignation of Vic Bras. My interest is only in the circumstances behind the reappointment of Helen Cram to the Board of Elections. I care not one bit about the leadership structure of the PWCDC and if you actually read what I have written on the subject you would know that. To me, personally, the inner workings and personalities of the local political committees are hardly news. The stories can be good for a chuckle sometimes…
Just to clarify, my analysis was not based in any way on Craig’s opinions.
You folks think the Dems are screwed up? Attend a PWCRC meeting and bring a barf bag. If you can tolerate a few hours of “Team Kopko” patting themselves on the back, you are a good candidate for the U.S. Senate.