 | |
| Company type | 501(c)(4)[1] |
|---|---|
| Founded | May 1994; 31 years ago (1994-05)[citation needed] |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Key people | Sarah Chamberlain[2] (President,CEO) |
| Revenue | US$1.8 million[1] (2022) |
| US$416.7 thousand[1] (2022) | |
| Website | republicanmainstreet mainstreetcaucus |
TheRepublican Main Street Partnership is anonprofit organization that was founded to raise funds to support politicians in the moderate wing of the Republican Party.[3] As of 2024, the organization seems to be leaning away from its original centrist mission.[4] The Republican Main Street Partnership does not advocate for legislation but offers networking andmentorship opportunities and provides a forum for discussion. The partnership is affiliated with asuper PAC called Defending Main Street.[5] The partnership is also affiliated with the Republican Main Street Caucus, a Republicancongressional member organization that takes pragmatic conservative positions.[citation needed]
Rep.Amo Houghton of New York was the founder and chairman emeritus of the Republican Main Street Partnership.[2]
The partnership was formed following the1994 United States House of Representatives elections in which conservative Republicans were swept into power. An informal discussion group formed by representativesNancy Johnson,Steve Gunderson andFred Upton later became an organized bloc intent on representing themoderate wing of the Republican Party. The partnership has described itself as a "broad alliance of conservative, governing Republicans".[2][better source needed]
In 2004, the Republican Main Street Partnership proposed changes that would have moved the Republican Party's platform regarding abortion and stem-cell research in a moderate direction.[6]
Members of Congress affiliated with the partnership have been challenged in Republican primaries by members from theClub for Growth,FreedomWorks and theTea Party movement, among others.[7][better source needed] The partnership had a notably adversarial relationship with thefiscally conservative Club for Growth. In 2011, however, the director of the partnership stated that the two groups had "'come to an understanding'".[8]
The partnership is affiliated with a super PAC called Defending Main Street.[5]
In September 2017, the Republican Main Street Caucus was formed withPat Tiberi (OH–12) as chair.[9] The caucus is a Republican congressional member organization that takes pragmatic conservative positions.[citation needed] Upon its formation, the caucus stated that it would prioritize "'strong, conservative principles related to economic and national security policy'". Tiberi added, "'We are focused on getting things done and delivering real results to the American people'".[9] After Tiberi's resignation from the House in 2018,Rodney Davis (IL–13) took over duties as chair.[10]
In the2018 United States House of Representatives elections, the Democratic Party won a majority of the seats in the House of Representatives. The Democrats gained a net total of 41 seats. This total was their largest gain of House seats in an election since the1974 elections.[3]
On November 28, 2018, the Republican Main Street Caucus met with the Republican Main Street Partnership to ask why the partnership'ssuper PAC had left $722,000 of its funds unspent. The partnership's chief executive officer, Sarah Chamberlain, said that $6 million had been spent on 2018 campaigns and that the remaining $722,000 was set aside for 2020. Members of the caucus expressed concern that Chamberlain's compensation was 20 percent of the partnership's operating expenses.[3] The following month, the caucus voted unanimously to suspend political activity with the partnership until an independentaudit of the partnership's governance could be conducted. The partnership declined to be audited.[3] AnNPR story about the turmoil involving the partnership led to litigation.[5]
The members of the caucus voted to dissolve the caucus in February 2019.[3]
By 2021, the Republican Main Street Caucus had re-formed.[5] As of 2023, it had once again become one of the major Republican caucuses in the House of Representatives. The caucus identifies itself as a group of pragmatic conservatives. It is affiliated with the Republican Main Street Partnership.[citation needed] The caucus has also been described as "centrist"[11] and "mainstream".[12]
According to an article published in the New York Times in March 2024, it seems the organization is moving away from its centrist politics. "The Republican Main Street Partnership ...directed half a million dollars...to defeat Representative Bob Good, a hard-right lawmaker from Virginia, making an unusual push to oust a sitting Republican member of Congress. The move [wa]s notable... because the candidate it [wa]s backing — John J. McGuire, a former member of the Navy SEALs and an election denier who has pledged fealty to former president Donald J. Trump and promised to bring a “biblical worldview” to Congress — bears so little resemblance to the kind of moderate Republican the Main Street Partnership was founded to support."[13]
| Start | End | Chair(s) | District |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2018 | Pat Tiberi | OH-12 |
| 2018 | 2021 | Rodney Davis | IL-13 |
| 2021 | 2023 | Don Bacon | NE-02 |
| Mike Bost | IL-12 | ||
| Pete Stauber | MN-08 | ||
| 2023 | present | Dusty Johnson | SD-AL |
As of January 2025, the partnership listed eight U.S. senators and 79 U.S. representatives as being affiliated with it.[14]
