Deborah Tamargo has won re-election as chair of the Hillsborough County Republican Party.
Tamargo withstood a challenge from Jonny Torres, the second vice chairman of the party, winning 94-58 over Torres on Tuesday night at the party’s reorganization meeting at MOSI in North Tampa.
Torres ran an insurgent campaign against Tamargo, who was narrowly elected in 2014 over former chair Debbie Cox-Roush. He claimed party membership and interest had dropped in recent years, and that local candidates weren’t really helped by the REC in the most recent election cycle.
Tamargo challenged those assertions, and ultimately the rank and file voted to stand by her.
Other elected races were not contested: Jeff Lukens was unanimously re-elected first vice chair, and Bob Emerson was re-elected party treasurer.
Jeanne Webb was elected secretary.
