Brown County Republican Politics: Notes – Legal Case

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Last updated: July 12, 2026

Summary 

The State GOP developed Rule 1-25 that states: The term “Republican in Good-Standing” shall be defined as a Republican who supports Republican nominees and who does not actively or openly support another candidate against a Republican nominee.

What they did not state is that this rule can be applied arbitrarily to some candidates but not to others.

Political parties are considered “private entities or clubs” whose decisions can be enforced by a taxpayer-funded county government election board.  Taxpayers (not the political parties) also fund the party primaries.

County government is not exempt from the rights granted in the U.S. Constitution – in this case, the First (free speech) and 14th (due process).

Apr 17, 2026. Stanley ballot lawsuit dismissed by judge, federal appeal continues

  • Dismissed by the state court, citing the federal case.

Mar 6, 2026. Stanley Files new lawsuit after removal from GOP primary ballot

  • The lawsuit was with the State of Indiana.

Feb 3, 2026. Clark, Stanley lawsuit dismissed in federal court … and is being appealed.  If the appeal is not granted, case has the potential to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Oct 21, 2025.  Brown County Election Board asks for lawsuit to be thrown out By Courtney Hughett -October 21, 2025

Need for Change.  Brown County has a one-party monopoly (Republican) on political power, where only a few individuals can significantly influence who can run for a political office, be appointed to a board or commission, or even get or keep a county government job.  Power always corrupts and can create a system that can corrupt those who work within it. If you put a good person in a bad system, the system wins most, if not all, of the time.  My case for change was outlined in my campaign strategy.

Indiana State Republican Party Rule 1-25. The term “Republican in Good-Standing” shall be defined as a Republican who supports Republican nominees and who does not actively or openly support another candidate against a Republican nominee

Context.  Joseph Hero Case. A long-term Republican Party member decided to publicly support an independent candidate. He was banned by the Party for running for office for 10 years. This was deemed acceptable by the court, which determined that the restriction was “reasonable and nondiscriminatory.”   

    • Joseph Hero:  ACLU Sues Lake County Election Board. In August 2022, the Seventh Circuit affirmed that the Lake County Election Board did not violate Hero’s First or Fourteenth Amendment rights.  The party has the right to establish and enforce its rules.
    • Mark Bowman, Chair of the Brown County Republican Party, supported an Independent candidate in violation of Rule 1-25.  Bowman’s candidate acknowledged in a public candidate forum that he was not a Republican.  Bowman also made a public statement in 2018  that he personally did not support straight ticket voting  – that Republicans should consider supporting non-Republicans (another violation of Rule 1-25?):
      • “Even as a party chairman, Bowman said he doesn’t like to see so many voters choosing the straight-party option. To him, that shows voters lack knowledge about the candidates. The choice listed from one’s own party isn’t always automatically the best choice for the job” he said in the Nov. 14, 2018, issue of The Brown County Democrat.
    • A complaint was filed against Bowman with the Republican State Committee for violation of Rule 1-25. asking for a ban of only “5 years.” At the Region 9 Committee Hearing, the board members disregarded the complaint against Bowman and ruled that Clark (and Stanley) were not in good standing for five years.  There was never a formal complaint for a rule violation by Clark or Stanley, allowing them to challenge the allegations. 

Current Issues before the Court. Case Number: 1:25-cv-01482-TWP-MKK.
Are the 1st and 14th amendments to the Constitution violated when a county election board supports a ruling from the Republican State Committee, where rules (written and unwritten) can be selectively applied to some party officials and candidates for office, but not all?  The process:

    • Request made to the Election Board (EB) to choose not to support the ruling from the Republican Party that Clark and Stanley are not in Good Standing. Request denied.
      • Costs.  EB requested funding for legal expenses from the county council. Council budgeted up to 100K to cover legal fees. If the county loses, it will be required to pay the plaintiff’s (Clark/Stanley) legal fees. If the plaintiffs lose, they will not be required to pay the county’s legal fees.
    • Clark/Stanley: Case Filed;  EB Attorney: Filed a Motion To Dismiss
    • Clark/Stanley: Response to dismiss the motion to dismiss. EB can respond within 7 days. Judge Decides.levels
    • Clark/Stanley: Petition for Summary Judgment.  EB has 30 days to respond. (Judge reviews arguments and decides).
      • Either side can file an appeal depending on the ruling
    • INITIAL PRETRIAL CONFERENCE – This case is assigned for an initial pretrial conference by telephone on 10/6/2025.  

Banned for Life — or 10 years – whichever comes first?   If you are interested in running as a Republican and have ever supported a non-Republican candidate, you can be banned from running for office.  However, this rule only applies to some and not others, depending on the county GOP Leadership at the local, regional, and state level.

Aug 20, 2025. Election Board chair responds to commissioner’s lawsuit, By Courtney Hughett Brown County Democrat

Aug 15, 2025. Brown County elections board asks federal judge to dismiss lawsuit,
WFIU | By George Hale, Published August 15, 2025 at 2:32 PM EDT

Aug 13, 2025, Clark, Stanley file suit over ban  By Courtney Hughett Brown County Democrat

Feb 5, 2025. Letter: Clark responds to ruling on GOP chair complaint,  Brown County Democrat, By Tim Clark

    • At the hearing, Amanda Lowery, chair of the region committee, explained the unwritten rules that governed the committee’s decision:

      1. The Republican Party is a private club with rules.

      2. You are not a Republican in good standing if you criticize the party or its members, vote, or donate money to a non-Republican candidate — at any time in a person’s life.

      3. The rules can be selectively applied — as they were in this case.

      Given this Region 9 criteria, President Donald Trump could be considered a Republican “not” in Good Standing.

Mar 1, 2025.  Brown County Republican Party – Election of Officers by Precinct and Vice Precinct Committeemen.

    • President: Mark Bowman
    • Vice President L. Robyn Rosenberg Bowman. Contact information provided on website on and on promotion, materials: Robyn@Tramcore.com
      • Tramcore Realty:  Robyn Rosenberg Bowman, Managing Broker, Mark Bowman, Associate Broker, Tanner Bowman, Associate Broker
    • Secretary: Tanner Bowman
    • Treasurer: Ross Benson
 

Jan 27, 2025.  Clark’s complaint against GOP county chair Bowman rejected, Brown County Democrat › Between the Issues.  A complaint against Brown County Republican Party Chairman Mark Bowman filed by the newly elected Republican Brown County Commissioner  

 
Official’s complaint seeks removal of Brown County GOP chair
 By Dave Stafford, Brown County Democrat.  Clark filed a formal complaint Dec. 19 with the Indiana Republican State Committee alleging that Bowman violated state party rules “by failing …
 

Oct 29, 2024.  Letter: Republican commissioner candidate claims local party ‘abuse of power’ By  Tim Clark

Oct 11, 2024.  Letter: Change needed in local Republican Party Leadership .

    • Context. Rich Stanley wrote a letter in the Democrat (Stanley, 9/17/2024) calling for a change in the leadership of the local Republican Party led by Mark Bowman. A response to Rich’s letter was provided through a surrogate.
    • The Brown County Democrat declined to publish Richard’s rebuttal in its entirety to include the names of individuals who supported Rich’s response. The individuals include Clara Stanley, Greg DeLong, Dara DeLong, Vivian Wolf, Michael Painter, Charles F. Shaw, Jeanne Shaw, Jacob Adams, Amie Yoder, Charlene Marsh, Ben Phillips, Mercy Phillips, Daniel C. Huston, Holly H. Huston, Willow Snider, Ron Lawson, Jeff Marshall, Joy Martin. 

Sep 17, 2024. Letter to the editor: Rich Stanley.  We need a change in the leadership of the Brown County Republican Party. Specifically, I am referring to Mark Bowman, the Chairman of the Brown County Republican Central Committee. There has been indications for some time that Mark is running the Brown County Republican Party for his own personal ambitions instead of the good of the party. But, a recent event and scandal confirms that Mark Bowman cannot be trusted to lead our party, and we must remove him from political office.

Feb 19, 2023.  The challenge by Mark Bowman that Clark was not a Republican was dismissed by the Brown County Election Board.   Qualification to run as a Republican required voting as a Republican in the two most recent primaries.

Current Republican Party Leadership (March 2025) There were two  “No” votes (Charlie and Jeanne Shaw) against Mark Bowman’s re-election.

      • Chair: Mark Bowman
      • Vice Chair: Robyn Rosenbuerg Bowman.  Contact:  Robyn@Tramcore.com  
        • Managing Broker – Tramcore Realty. (Associate Brokers: Mark Bowman, Tanner Bowman)
      • Secretary: Tanner Bowman
      • Treasurer: Ross Benson

Precinct and Vice Precinct Committeemen as of Jan 2025. 

Local GOP – Big Beautiful BasH Contact:  Robyn@Tramcore.com  

 

 

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