John Linnehan for Ellsworth
John & Heather Linnehan
ELLSWORTH REPUBLICAN COMMITTEE
January 14th, 2026 Meeting Minutes
Ellsworth Republican Committee Meeting Minutes of January 14, 2026
Meeting called to order at 6:00 PM by John Linnehan, Chair. Opening prayer given by Melinda Workman and Pledge of Allegiance led by Russ White.
John Linnehan, Chair, began the meeting by introducing the 4 recently elected committee officers: John Linnehan, Chair; Chuck Leavitt, Vice-Chair; Rhonda Loncto, Secretary; Melinda Workman, Treasurer.
Chairman Linnehan then proceeded to state the purpose and duties of this committee as per the bylaws adopted February 26, 2022 which states as follows: "The committee is organized for the purpose of supporting and strengthening the Republican Party. It will accept contributions and make expenditures in order to influence the selection, nomination, election and appointment of Republicans to Federal, State and Local public office. In carrying out these purposes, the committee shall encourage all residents of the municipality to register and enroll in the Republican party and to vote in all elections, encourage qualified Republicans to seek office, support Republicans who seek elected office and cooperate with County and State Republican committees."
Next agenda item is to elect 7 individuals from this committee to serve as voting members on the Hancock County Republican Committee. Seven individuals offered to serve, and were unanimously voted in. They are as follows: Galen O'Kane, Philip Heasley, Earl Awalt, Marc McVay, John Seavey, Stephanie Schiller, and Richard Johnson. Note: Ellsworth has 17 total Ellsworth Republican Committee members eligible for our county committee. Also, it was stated that if you are unable to attend any of the HCRC meetings, you may use a proxy to attend in your place.
Upcoming events announced:
Hancock County Republican Committee (HCRC) meeting January 15th guest speaker Ben Midgley, gubernatorial candidate, 5:30 PM-6:30 PM; social hour and meeting begins at 6:30 PM.
February 11th 6:00 PM-7:30 PM is the next Ellsworth Republican Committee (ERC) meeting (you are encouraged to bring a guest as this will help grow the ERC)
February 28th Lincoln Day Dinner (details at the HCRC meeting)
March 7th County Caucus, Saturday 10:00 AM 4:00 PM Moore Community Center April, 24-25 State Convention at the Augusta Civic Center
John asked if there were people planning to run for office. We had several possibilities. John is planning an in-house primary for city council.
John shared that he has a website where information can be shared. You can view this at johnlinnehan.com, the home page has a list of events and dates. You can also select spiritual or political to view more information. It was also suggested that this committee should develop a Facebook page. Russ White suggested the best way to get more members to join is by word of mouth. Invite others to attend the ERC and the HCRC. Another suggested to write letters to the editor. Also Carey Jones with Bar Harbor Story, a free sub-stack will share events.
Donna Leavitt closed the meeting with a word of prayer.
Meeting adjourned at 7:19 PM
Respectfully submitted,
Rhonda Loncto, Secretary
Grand Opening
01/14/2026 Agenda
Wednesday, January 14th, 2026 John linnehan, newly elected Chair, starts meeting promptly at 6:00 PM, ends promptly at 7:30PM
AGENDA GRAND OPENING
ELLSWORTH REPUBLICAN COMMITTEE REORGANIZATION
1. Opening prayer and Pledge of Allegiance
2. Come meet the 4 newly elected officers: John Linnehan, Chair; Chuck Leavitt, Vice Chair; Rhonda Loncto, Secretary; and Melinda Workman, Treasurer
3. Our Ellsworth Committee has 17 total available positions to be elected as members of the Hancock County Republican Committee. We currently have 9 members elected. We will be electing the other 8 vacant positions by majority vote at this meeting so we have full representation. Please contact John Linnehan at either JohnLinnehan@hotmail.com or 207-460-4400 text or call to add your name as a candidate for this elected position.
4. ALL enrolled Ellsworth Republicans are automatically members of this Ellsworth Republican Committee.
5. If you are a candidate for any public office, please come and make known your intentions. We are organizing our Ellsworth Republican Committee NOW for the purpose of supporting and strengthening the Republican Party in Ellsworth. We will start now to influence the selection, nomination, and election of Republicans to local, State and Federal public office.
6. Miscellaneous discussion of any topic as time permits.
7. Closing prayer
ELLSWORTH REPUBLICAN COMMITTEE
Get active now as local Republicans as we bury some hatchets, mend some broken relationship fences, have fun and WORK TOGETHER for the first time in many years to elect quality local candidates to our City Council, School Board and all local government offices in 2026!
CONVENIENT MEETING LOCATION!
ELLSWORTH REPUBLICAN COMMITTEE!
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
February 11th, 2026
Maine Coast Mall - Beside TJ Maxx
225 High Street, STE 14, Ellsworth ME 04605oi
207-460-4400 / JohnLinnehan@hotmail.com Ellsworth City Republican Committee meetings will be held at the Hancock County Republican Committee Party Headquarters