CROWN POINT | Crown Point Mayor Dan Klein called Wednesday for the resignation of Lake County Republican Chairman John Curley and city chairman John Moos.
Klein said a change in Republican leadership is the only way to heal the party's rift. Democrat David Uran grabbed Crown Point's mayoral seat Tuesday from the divided GOP.
"I would ask for John Curley's resignation based on the fact he lost Highland, Hobart and Cedar Lake," Klein said. "I would accept his resignation based on those losses and ask we regroup so we can reorganize and move forward."
Klein said the party splintered four years ago when GOP mayoral candidate Gayle Van Sessen refused to endorse him after she lost the primary. It deepened into a chasm after the volatile 2007 primary when Klein lost his re-election bid to Van Sessen.
"John Curley supported her in the primary," Klein said. "With that support, he lost Crown Point to a Democrat and also lost a 25-year incumbent (City Councilman Paul Bremer)."
He tacked Moos onto the resignation list because he said Moos posted a sign about Klein tearing down the square before the primary.
Moos dismissed Klein's suggestion.
"That's just the way he operates," Moos said. "He blames everyone else for his shortcomings. He can ask for all the resignations he wants. The citizens of Crown Point already ordered his resignation."
Curley said he would only step down if Republicans, both winners and losers, gathered and made a unanimous decision to throw him out.
"It's very good to be a back-seat quarterback," he said. "If Mr. Klein has something he thinks would be constructive to bring this Republican Party together, then we will go forward. But it's not about how to take his group forward. It's the whole county, not just his corner of the world."
Longtime Republican City Councilman Bob Corbin, who drew ire from the party for openly supporting Uran, said lack of communication is what pulled him away from Van Sessen. He blamed Curley for not getting all the Republican candidates on the same page going into the election.
"For me, the most important thing is getting the best qualified people into leadership positions," Corbin said. "I've been concerned first about the community and being a Republican second. ... Qualified candidates were elected and life will continue."
Center Township Assessor Marty Wheeler, also a Republican, said the division in the party can be attributed to local favoritism.
"I think a change in the top echelon of the party would be very helpful," she said. "I think the leadership has made some serious mistakes. ... They don't treat everyone the same and they play favorites and that's not the way to run a party."
City Councilman-elect Mark Schweitzer said he believes the party members need to sit down and shout it out to heal the rift.
Center Township Trustee Eldon Strong agreed, saying it was time to put differences aside and support Crown Point.
