Ex-Berk. GOP chair may return

Berkeley County Republican Party Chairman Tim Callanan, who gave up his post in January to support presidential candidate Rick Santorum, may again take leadership of the party.

Some members of the party's executive committee hope to re-elect Callanan at the group's next meeting Feb. 20. Nominations will be accepted, and any member of the committee could run for the job, but committee members say that so far, no other name has come up.

Per state Republican Party rules, only the executive committee, which in Berkeley includes about 40 people, will vote to fill the unexpired term.

"There are a number of people that would like to see him nominated (for chairman), and hopefully he would accept that," said Nancy Corbin, a member of the executive committee. "We hated to see him resign to start with."

Callanan, who was party chairman for three years, said he has been contacted by "about 20 people" asking him to accept the position, but has not yet decided if he will.

Callanan said his involvement with Santorum's campaign is over.

"The rules prevented me (as party chairman) from endorsing a candidate in a competitive primary that includes Berkeley County," he said. "Since the primary is over for Berkeley County, the restriction would have ended when the polls closed on primary day."

If he accepts the position again, it could be short-lived. Callanan -- who represents Daniel Island and portions of Goose Creek and Hanahan on the Berkeley County Council -- plans to run for re-election this year.

"My interpretation of the rules is that, at the end of filing, if there's more than two people in the primary, then I will again have to resign," he said. "If nobody is running against me in the primary, I won't have to."

Detractors have been spreading information on Facebook and via email that Callanan planned to reclaim party leadership all along.

"I think that Tim Callanan is doing this for the purpose of hitching onto someone's coattails," said Don Bailey, who called himself a "citizen who has time on his hands and is concerned," and said his "agenda is to expose them."

Bailey said he was turned away from membership in the Berkeley County Republican Party and runs a Facebook page called "Berkeley County Politics" -- where posts are often aimed at Callanan.

"It was a publicity stunt. (Tim) did in the eyes of the public a very honorable thing: He resigned so that he could campaign for Rick Santorum," Bailey said. "In my humble opinion, this was all set up because he wanted to make himself look like a good, honest and decent man."

Callanan said the harassment from Bailey and others might keep him from accepting the chairman's job if he is re-elected.

"I am getting criticized by people who have no involvement in the Republican Party," he said. "To be honest, I do not mind the enormous amount of work and expense that goes with the job, but it's the constant barrage of defamatory garbage that is thrown at me and my family that gives me pause."

Reach Brenda Rindge at 937-5713 or www.facebook.com/b.rindge.