Kelly Ruh, a longtime conservative activist who’s been active in the state GOP, has resigned from her role as treasurer for the Republican Party of Wisconsin, citing “dysfunctional leadership” and a lack of a strategic plan.
Ruh’s exit further hints at an internal power struggle between old guard Republicans and members of the national group Turning Point Action.
Ruh’s resignation letter was shared on the social media platform X by Turning Point Action National Enterprise Director Brett Galaszewski, who also serves as vice chair of the Milwaukee County Republican Party and is a member of the Republican Party of Wisconsin’s executive committee.
Ruh has worked with the state GOP for the past decade and was one of 10 Republicans who posed as presidential electors and signed paperwork falsely claiming that President Donald Trump won Wisconsin’s 2020 election.
In her letter, Ruh said after a decade serving the state GOP, she “can no longer meaningfully contribute to our Party’s executive leadership team under the current circumstances.”
“The absence of a strategic plan, defined objectives, and measurable outcomes, as well as budgetary issues have created an environment in which progress is difficult to assess and nearly impossible to achieve,” Ruh said.
Ruh didn’t pull any punches and said internal dynamics within the party, “particularly the dysfunctional leadership,” have stifled collaboration.
“The lack of transparency, direction, and respect for differing perspectives — or even basic board oversight — has fostered a culture that is not only ineffective but also absurd,” Ruh said.
She said recent elections show that if the state GOP doesn’t “drastically change its approach” to leadership, fundraising, messaging, organizing and addressing issues that Wisconsinites care about, then “it will play no role in deciding our state’s future.”
“As a conservative, this greatly disappoints me, but it is clear the required change is not likely to come from RPW’s current leadership,” Ruh said.
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Ruh did not respond to a request for comment on her resignation letter.
In a statement, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chair Brian Schimming said members of the party’s executive committee thank Ruh for her service “and wish her the best of luck in her future endeavors.”
Ruh departure the latest hint at internal GOP power struggle
In his post sharing Ruh’s letter, Galaszewski described the departure as a “big shakeup” for the party. He said the two had conversations “about reforming the movement” and “being left in the dark on key objectives.”
“When even voices from the old guard start saying the quiet part out loud, it should be a wake up call for everyone,” Galaszewski said.
Galaszewski has talked openly about conservatives needing to take over the Republican Party in the past. During a Turning Point event in 2023, he said the only reason he joined “the hell hole that it can be sometimes” was to change it from within.
After conservatives’ Wisconsin Supreme Court election loss in April, some county GOP leaders, either affiliated with or backed by Turning Point, called for change at the state party, including Schimming’s resignation.
Not long after the election, the state GOP created a new process to oust county party officials and executive committee members if they harass or publicly defame fellow party officials or Republican lawmakers. The changes, approved by the GOP executive committee, said “grassroots members” have the right to elect local and regional party leaders but those individuals “should be working in coordination to achieve the Republican Party of Wisconsin’s goals and mission.”
The new party bylaw was approved after a messy 8th Congressional District Republican caucus. That included accusations of bullying and claims party leaders weren’t following GOP rules during the election of now-8th District GOP Chair Ken Sikora. At the time, some Republicans within the district raised concerns about Sikora’s 2019 conviction on misdemeanor battery and disorderly conduct charges with domestic abuse modifiers.
In August, the Republican Party of Wisconsin released an autopsy, overseen by Republican state Treasurer John Leiber, of what the state GOP needed to do better after the Supreme Court loss. It recommended increasing out-of-state contributions, bolstering party messaging and helping county parties enhance their outreach.
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