The National Federation of Republican Assemblies (NFRA) is a political organization which promotes
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
principles and candidates within the
Republican Party of the United States. Members at the local, state and national levels work to recruit and elect Republican candidates who reflect the Party's conservative philosophy, and to oppose so-called "
RINOs" (Republicans In Name Only), leaders and candidates who take positions to the left of the party's conservative mainstream.
History
The first Republican Assembly was founded in 1934 in California. The Republican Assembly movement grew primarily in the western part of the United States until, in 1996, the several state Republican Assemblies formalized their relationship to one another through the creation of the NFRA, which was also tasked with the establishment of state chapters in those parts of the country to which the movement had not yet spread.
In 2012, the NFRA's Presidential Preference Convention endorsed
Rick Santorum
Richard John Santorum Sr. ( ; born May 10, 1958) is an American politician, attorney, author, and political commentator who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1995 to 2007. He was the Senate's Chairman of the United Sta ...
for president on the fifth ballot.
In 2016, it endorsed Senator Ted Cruz. In 2020 and 2024, the NFRA endorsed Donald Trump.
Prior to the
2024 United States presidential election
United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 5, 2024. The Republican Party (United States), Republican Party's Ticket (election), ticket—Donald Trump, who was the 45th president of ...
, the NFRA adopted a resolution as part of its platform claiming that Vice President
Kamala Harris
Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
was not a natural born citizen and was thus ineligible to serve as President. In support of this claim, the NFRA cited the 1857 Supreme Court decision in
Dred Scott v Sandford, which stated that people of black African descent could not be U.S. citizens.
The organization also adopted a "right of return" policy goal that would encourage and subsidize "the voluntary emigration for any citizen of the U.S. who wishes to emigrate to their country of origin/ancestry provided that their ancestors were brought to this country against their will". The policy which drew comparisons to the attempted ethnic removal of African-Americans by the
American Colonization Society
The American Colonization Society (ACS), initially the Society for the Colonization of Free People of Color of America, was an American organization founded in 1816 by Robert Finley to encourage and support the repatriation of freeborn peop ...
was criticized.
National governance
The NFRA is governed by a board of directors composed of its officers and three national directors from each state, one of which is the state's president. Unlike the Republican National Committee, there is no gender requirement for any office. National officers are elected for two year terms at the organization's bi-annual convention.
Former Nevada Republican U.S. Senate nominee
Sharron Angle was elected president on September 15, 2013. Former Ohio Secretary of State and Republican nominee in the
2006 Ohio gubernatorial election Ken Blackwell
John Kenneth Blackwell (born February 28, 1948) is an American politician, author, and Conservatism in the United States, conservative activist who served as the mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio (1979–1980), the Ohio State Treasurer (1994–1999), and ...
was elected executive vice president in 2011 and was re-elected in 2013. In 2016, Angle resigned to run again for United States Senate, and was succeeded as president by Willes Lee, former chairman of the Republican Party of Hawaii. Lee is a West Point graduate, former Army Ranger, and a founder of the Republican National Committee's Conservative Caucus.
Advisory board
Members of the advisory board include
Fox News
The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...
contributor and former
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
and
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
policy director
Jim Pinkerton, U.S. Senator
Ted Cruz
Rafael Edward Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 ...
's father and advisor
Rafael Cruz, Conservatives of Faith founder Bob Fischer, former
''Crisis'' magazine publisher and senior
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
advisor
Deal Hudson, former appeals court justice and leader of the
Conservative Resurgence in the
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), alternatively the Great Commission Baptists (GCB), is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist organization, the largest Protestant, and the second-largest Chr ...
Paul Pressler
Paul S. Pressler (born 1956) is an American business executive. He is currently the chairman of the board of directors of eBay. He has previously held executive positions at companies such as Gap, Inc., The Walt Disney Company, and was a partner ...
,
National Religious Broadcasters
National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) is an international association of evangelical communicators. While theologically diverse within the evangelical community, NRB members are linked through a Declaration of Unity that proclaims their joint com ...
president
Jerry Johnson, fund manager and best-selling author
Kevin Freeman, former
Republican Study Committee
The Republican Study Committee (RSC) is a congressional caucus of conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. In November 2024, Representative August Pfluger was elected as the chair of the RSC, ...
executive director
Paul Teller and former U.S. Congressman
Ernest Istook.
References
External links
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Political organizations based in the United States
Republican Party (United States) organizations
Conservative organizations in the United States