California GOP Officially Recognizes Gay Faction Of Party

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - The California Republican Party on Sunday officially recognized the party's organized gay wing that has fought years for formal acceptance.

The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday that the 38-year-old Log Cabin Republican group received overwhelming support to receive a charter at the state party's biannual convention in Sacramento.

The chairman of the Log Cabin Group said the organization worked two years on its application and cited the active involvement members had in recent campaigns. Delegates granted the group a charter on an 861-293 vote.

"A lot of us knew we were Republican before we knew we were gay, so this is home for us," said Charles Moran, head of the Log Cabin organization.

Formal recognition of the Log Cabin group was opposed by some party social conservatives, who argued the item violated the party's bylaws. They also argued the issue was quietly placed on the convention agenda without little notice and no time for debate.

A longtime Republican conservative activist called approval of the Log Cabin's charter a "travesty" that cuts against the party's stand on family values.

Celeste Greig also told the San Francisco Chronicle (http://tinyurl.com/loeb3uf) that the Log Cabin group's efforts to be chartered were "a real travesty."

"They are promoting a lifestyle, which is against our bylaws," said Greig, who insisted that party rules mandate that "no group should be chartered if you have a personal agenda."

But the group won support from national figures to help with its campaign for formal recognition.

In a speech from the convention floor Sunday, the Sacramento Bee reported that Shawn Steel, a Republican National Committeeman from California, said the gay group has supported Republican causes for years and deserved the recognition.

"They have been solid soldiers in their fight against leftist tyranny in California," Steel said. "I would welcome them in our organization ... I am proud to have them in the California Republican Party."

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press.