Brewer, McCain to share GOP dinner
Feb. 17 is going to be a big day for the Yuma County Republican Central Committee.
The local political organization will be hosting the Yuma GOP Lincoln Day Dinner, with keynote speakers Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
"It is a big coup for us to get both of them," said Phil Townsend, Yuma County Republican Party chairman. "We may be the only Lincoln Day in the state to have both of them. it is highly unusual. It makes it a very high profile dinner and a very exciting one."
Other attending dignitaries will include Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett and State Treasurer Dean Martin. Bennett is seeking election to a full term in office, having replaced Brewer when she assumed the governorship, and Martin is seeking the Republican nomination for governor.
There will also be many other candidates attending who are running for statewide and local offices.
"This is a great opportunity for voters to come and meet those who are running for various offices in the Republican Party before the upcoming elections," Townsend said.
The Lincoln Day Dinner is an annual event held by the Yuma County Republican Party and is held in honor of President Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president.
The dinner reception will begin at 6 p.m. Feb. 17 at the Hilton Garden Inn Pivot Point Conference Center, 310 N. Madison Ave.
Since the event will be held on Ash Wednesday, a substitute fish dinner will be offered.
Tickets - at $45 each, in advance only - are available at Republican Headquarters, 1185. S. 4th Ave, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays or from Phil Townsend, 941-1322.
"This is a fundraiser for the Yuma County Republican Party, and the whole idea is to instill excitement in people about the Republican Party and the upcoming elections," Townsend said.
Brewer, who became governor upon the resignation of Janet Napolitano, previously served as Arizona secretary of state, on the Maricopa Country Board of Supervisors and in the Arizona Legislature. She is seeking election to a full term this year.
Sen. McCain is completing his fourth term as U.S. senator from Arizona and is running for another term. He was also the 2008 Republican presidential nominee.
