IL-14/IL-GOP: Catalina Lauf Slams Mark Shaw in State Republican Chairman Race

Catalina Lauf
Mark Shaw

“I do not support Mark Shaw for chairman of Illinois Republican Party.”

Late Sunday night, former IL-14 congressional candidate Catalina Lauf (R, Woodstock) who’s also executive director of the Defense of Freedom PAC in a 3-part tweet, slammed Illinois Republican Co-Chair Mark Shaw’s bid to be elected state party chairman on Saturday.

Lauf continued with the following transcribed tweets:

“We need a leader who will listen to those on the ground, committed to grassroots, and who can actually lead the GOP in this State on a path forward. Time for new perspectives and servant leadership.

I am personally committed to helping the Illinois Republican Party in any way that I can, and hope they elect a leader with a vision, and who will accurately represent the principles of Illinois Republicans – NOT their own interests or the establishment way.

“There is no faith in the GOP Party structure here in IL — why? Because what have they done? If we want to make real change and flip this State Red we need a better leadership from the top down!”

Catalina Lauf tweets 1/31/21

.

Scott Gryder
Don Tracy

While Lauf did not voice a preference for state chairman among the other two finalists for Saturday’s Illinois Republican State Central Committee meeting between Kendall County Board Chairman Scott Gryder and former Illinois Gaming Board Chairman Don Tracy, she made clear what her expectations are for the next Illinois Republican Party chairman and her commitment to work with the state party.

As touched upon in the McHenry County Blog article over the weekend, Mark Shaw’s role in the 2020 election cycle, through his role as Lake County Republican Party chairman, is one that does not listen to the grassroots but is interested in the Republican old guard ritual of slate making under the guise of an open and fair process, including slating Jim Oberweis as the endorsed candidate for the IL-14 Republican nomination on November 2, 2019, nearly a month before the first petitions were filed.

While Lauf was one of the 6 Republican candidates in the IL-14 primary who participated in Shaw’s “cattle call” before the Lake County Republican Party Executive Committee, she didn’t cite that specific event as a reason for her slam against Shaw.

But any casual observer can look back at that event and see it as a crystal clear example of how Shaw would operate as the state party chairman, especially for the statewide and congressional spots up for election in 2022.

The IL-14 Republican primary candidate who did not participate in the “rigged” event, state Senator Sue Rezin (R, Morris) explained it best and in detail in her November 1, 2019 letter to Lake County Republican precinct committeepersons here.

Another former IL-14 Republican candidate, James Marter, who chairs the Kendall County Republican Central Committee spoke positively about finalist Scott Gryder, but stopped short of endorsing him.

Marter’s audio comment as well as a Kendall County Board member who serves with Gryder, can be heard here.


Comments

IL-14/IL-GOP: Catalina Lauf Slams Mark Shaw in State Republican Chairman Race — 11 Comments

  1. I do not think Republicans did very well in Lake County.

    Not a good sign for Shaw.

  2. Excellent!

    I’m a harsh critic of Catalina Lauf but I agree with her on this issue 100 percent and have strong feelings about it.

    Mark Shaw had his chance as the chairman of Lake County GOP and the “co-chair” of the IL GOP and he blew it.

    Not only did he blow it from a results oriented point of view, but he did shady stuff too.

    Mark Shaw is both incompetent AND corrupt, and he should not get a promotion.

    When Shaw initially ran for chairman to challenge Tim Schneider several years ago, I was happy.

    The tide had turned against Chairman Schneider.

    We thought we could replace Schneider who wasn’t doing a good job.

    But Shaw gave up suddenly.

    Why did he do that?

    I learned about how Schneider offered Shaw to be “co-chair” (a position he just made up) and Shaw accepted it without a fight!

    I felt double-crossed.

    This fighter/reformer surrendered his fight (really, our fight) for a fictitious position of power.

    It got even worse though.

    After that, Shaw pulled his little Lake County GOP endorsement stunt which was well documented on this blog.

    We all know it was rigged.

    And that rigged endorsement did NOT help Oberweis at all.

    It probably hurt him if anything, by making people think the GOP from bottom to top is rotten and crooked.

    There is a solution and it is easy to remember.

    How to fix the GOP?

    The answer is in the name.

    GET OTHER PEOPLE!

    Clearly there are way too many losers in the GOP.

    Time for some change.

    If you can’t get it done, step aside, chump!

    We already know Shaw can not “get it done” so he shouldn’t be considered!

  3. Correcting, my understanding over the Shaw challenge a few years back was then-Governor Rauner brokered the compromise, using the little-known office of co-chair which was usually to place a person of opposite gender as the “co-pilot” for the state chairman.

    The co-chair position has been around for a while, and clearly the gender requirement was waived to make peace during Rauner’s tenure.

  4. You are dumb and rude, Jen.

    Dumb because that’s all you got from my diatribe against Mark Shaw.

    Rude because after saying I agreed with her, you still felt it necessary to belittle me.

    Good luck winning voters like that.

  5. Shaw is a clown, well hated by fellow lawyers in Lake County.

    Under his leadership he lost every county wide office to the dems.

    Why would we allow him to destroy the state GOP

  6. I do not support Mark Shaw, nor do I trust his leadership.

    He sent out 102 letters to our Republican Party.

    Telling them that I am a Democrat plant!

    No one believed that mess.

    But, this just shows how egotistical he is and petty.

    He ran a Democrat, Never Trumper in our party.

    And, backed him as a Republican candidate.

    Mark Shaw is a disaster waiting to happen!

    I am being told that if he IS made President of our ILGOP….

    We will see a spinoff and a NEW party will emerge…

    Trump Conservative Party.

    ILGOP never supported President Trump.

    Minority women aren’t welcomed as well.

    VOTE NO SHAW!

  7. Mark Shaw gave us loser Mark Curran, knowing Curran was weak.

    Knowing Curran was a MEVER TRUMPER, knowing Curran was for ILLEGALS first.

    Knowing no police department would endorse him, because he was for sanctuary cities in Illinois.

    Shaw knew I won every straw poll in Northern Illinois.

    But, still he gave us his employee Mark Curran.

    It isn’t “sour grapes” that he called Peggy Hubbard.

    its COMMON SENSE!

    You say NO to a NEVER TRUMPER.

    Aren’t we tired of unelected candidates?

    ILGOP needs replacing…The whole lot of them needs to go.

    Shaw should be the first to go.

  8. Without your name, it is pretty hard to figure out to what straw poll you refer.

  9. Peggy Hubbard, and this A. Cappelli who was clearly a supporter of Hubbard, have mixed apples with oranges.

    What Mr. Shaw did AFTER Mark Curran won the Republican primary was legitimate, which was why it was published here on McHenry County Blog last summer.

    As for being a “Democrat”, it was no secret Curran was a Democrat through the 2006 election cycle, when he won Lake County sheriff as a Democrat.

    He switched to Republican because of his strong pro-life convictions, and won reelection twice before being defeated for reelection in 2018, coincidentally while Shaw was Lake County Republican chairman.

    Shaw’s record as Lake County Republican chairman ALONE disqualifies him from being state chairman, but will that be a deciding factor for this Saturday’s vote for state chairman among the state central committeepersons?

    We’ll see.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *