Michael Kitch

LACONIA -- The rift among local Republicans widened this week when Frank Tilton, chairman of the Belknap County Republican Committee, flatly refused to allow Tom Tardif, who is challenging him for the Laconia seat on the county commission in the GOP primary, to address the committee tonight.

Last week, Skip Murphy, who chairs the Gilford Republican Committee, asked Tilton if Tardif could speak at the regular monthly meeting, the last before the primary election on September 9. Tilton answered "no" and repeated himself shortly afterwards when Doug Lambert, Tardif's fiscal agent, made an "official request" by e-mail. Lambert pointed out that not only was the meeting the last before the primary but "there have been no meetings of the Laconia Republican City Committee for Tom to have the chance to make his case to fellow party members."

Tilton replied "I received the same request from another spokesperson, Skip Murphy, and responded. Apparently you haven't talked with him."   

Tilton said yesterday that he was approached "very late in the game" by Murphy and Lambert, but heard nothing from Tardif himself. He said that he had set the agenda for the August meeting of the county committee and scheduled four speakers. Moreover, since he was a candidate for the county commission as well as chairman of the GOP committee, he said that the committee was not "an appropriate forum."

Belknap County Republican Chair Frank Tilton who makes it a habit to restrict attendance at GOP meetings.

"I told Skip that as chairman we should not use the committee as a forum for a campaign," he continued. "I am very uncomfortable about using that forum for anything that could be construed as self-serving."

Tilton said that he did not think it was self serving for him to deny Tardif, who after all is challenging him for the Republican nomination for county commissioner, an opportunity to speak. "I don't mind responding to Tom Tardif," he said, "but not in that forum."

Tilton also pointed out that "Tardif has never been to a meeting" and said "he is not an active member of the Republican Party in Belknap County."

Lambert and Tardif have been thorns in the flesh of county Republicans for more than a year. They successfully challenged the Belknap County Convention, consisting of the 18 members of the House of Representatives elected from the county -- 14 of them Republicans -- over the appointment of the county sheriff, which was overturned by the New Hampshire Supreme Court. This spring they challenged the convention's handling of the 2009 county budget, compelling it to adopt the original budget proposed by the commissioners by default.

Lambert considered Tilton's move "a continuation of what has become business as usual by the Republicans in Belknap County -- barring access and barring the public."