The Idaho Republican Party has a new chairman.

Executive director of the Idaho Water Users Association and Eagle city councilman Norm Semanko was selected by GOP members Saturday at their state convention in Sandpoint. By a 227-169 vote, Semanko beat two-term incumbent Kirk Sullivan, who earlier in the day had been endorsed by Governor Butch Otter.

Dissatisfaction with Sullivan gained momentum in the last two weeks, when Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna and U.S. Rep. Bill Sali and backed Semanko. Sullivan was opposed to closing Idaho’s GOP primary election, as most Republicans had called for to lessen the chances of Democrats, Independents and others influencing the election of more moderate candidates.

Meanwhile, a separate 199-192 vote among delegates in Sandpoint supported retaining the state’s open primary - that vote is a reversal from two years ago, when delegates at the 2006 convention in Idaho Falls overwhelmingly voted to close the GOP primary election.

Asked whether the Republican Party would proceed with its federal lawsuit over the primary against Secretary of State Ben Ysursa, Semanko said he first planned to bring the sides together. The party’s central committee meets again in October.

(AP)