Ally Raskin, precinct chair for Dallas County, told The Dallas Express that the position is one of the party’s most underutilized tools for grassroots engagement.
Dallas County has roughly 800 total precinct seats, but Raskin explained that “we only have 245 seats filled right now.” While some precincts have no voters and don’t require a chair, she still estimates that “we have around 500 seats that need to be filled.”
As Raskin described, the precinct chair position combines neighborhood outreach with direct involvement in decision-making for your local party. “What it entails is attending the monthly county executive chair meeting… and then getting out, meeting their neighbors and getting people to vote during election seasons,” she added.
Precinct chairs not only help identify voter concerns but also support candidates who align with local priorities and even handle practical campaign tasks, such as getting election signs into neighborhoods.
“We’re the ones who actually help run the party locally,” Raskin said, before pointing out several recent decisions where precinct chairs played a big role in Texas.
“We just passed two resolutions, one was about supporting the legislation to stop modifying our weather in Texas, and then one was to stop fluoridating our water in Dallas County – those both received 100% approval,” Raskin said.
On the political side, precinct chairs also voted to censure two legislators, “for consistently voting against our legislative priorities” set at the Texas Republican Convention.
The process to become a precinct chair is pretty straightforward: “They apply via the DallasGOP.org website, just fill out the form. The form comes to me, and then they participate in an interview,” Raskin told DX.
Applicants must live in the precinct for which they are applying.
For those with broader political ambitions, the role can be a valuable training ground, or even an “intro” into the political world. “If someone wants to be on city council or school board, this is a great stepping stone. You really kind of learn the inner workings of what it takes to run for an office… you learn a lot of how the city works,” Raskin added.
Raskin emphasized that vacancies exist across the county.
“We have seats everywhere,” she said, adding that residents can look up their precinct and see whether it’s filled on the Dallas County Republican Party’s website. Even if a seat is taken, Raskin encourages conservatives to reach out to their precinct chair to offer help.
For more information or to apply for a Republican precinct chair position, those interested can visit DallasGOP.org.