The RNC originally consisted of one man per state and territory but, after the

passage of the 19th amendment was expanded to include one woman per state.27

Delegates served four year terms, elected at one national convention and serving

through the next, and represented their state parties at RNC meetings. These

gatherings were usually held once or twice per year to ratify decisions of the

Chairman and the more exclusive Executive Committee, which served as a sounding

board for the Chairman and gave specialized or sensitive advice on strategy and

policy decisions. Such an amalgamation of personalities and self interests, both on the

RNC and the Executive Committee, led to regular factional disputes that reflected

existing differences in agenda and perspective, or even petty personal conflicts,

between members. Meetings and workshops could often turn into heated discussions

between individuals, states, and even regions. Setting a clear direction in such a

politically tense environment challenged even the most skilled legislators and

politicians.28

 The individual charged with creating order out of this seemingly chaotic system

was the party Chairman. Technically, the RNC membership elected the Chairman, but

was selected for a number of reasons. Prior to World War II, the Chairman was

chosen by the presidential candidate, and dutifully elected by the RNC, to oversee the

campaign.29 If the party won the White House, the Chairman remained on to manage

patronage distribution to the faithful. If the party lost, the defeated candidate was

27 Catherine Rymph, Republican Women: Feminism and Conservatism From .Suttrl'i'a ;i,. ,i,1i the Rise
of the New Right (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2006).

28 Two good, general works on the National Committees are Paul T. David, et. al., The Politics of
National Party Conventions (Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution, 1960); and Ralph M.
Goldman, The National Party Chairman and Committees: Factionalism at the Top (Armonk, N.Y.:
M.E. Sharpe, 1990).

29 During and after World War II and the advent of the direct primary, candidates began to use their
own campaign staffs to run the national contest, diminishing the importance of both national
committees during election season. See chapter 2 below.