A large majority of the GOP officials
who attempted to oust former Illinois GOP Chairman Pat Brady for his
support of gay marriage have lost their party positions.
Six of the seven state central
committee members who last year signed a letter calling for Brady's
removal lost their re-election campaigns this week.
Brady came out in favor marriage
equality as lawmakers debated a marriage bill, saying in a statement
that it “strengthens and reinforces a key Republican value – that
the law should treat all citizens equally.”
Citing personal reasons, Brady resigned
last May.
“There were some people that have
moved on that were great, and then there were others that were
absolutely destructive and were not good for the party and they're
gone,” Brady
told the AP. “All in all, it was a good night, [bringing in] a
lot of new blood.”
(Related: Illinois
county issues 1,000 marriage licenses to gay couples before law's
start.)