Haslam won’t say who got his presidential vote — but he’s concerned with GOP future

Gov. Bill Haslam won’t say who got his vote in the presidential election but does say he has concerns about the long-term future of the Republican Party, according to the Times-Free Press.

The governor voted early in Knoxville Thursday and, after returning to Nashville later in the day, refused to tell reporters how he cast his ballot in the presidential election – except that it wasn’t Hillary Clinton. Haslam had previously declared he would not vote for Republican nominee Donald Trump and intended to vote for another Republican via write-in ballot, bringing criticism from some fellow Republicans, including some county organizations that have passed resolutions condemning him.

Asked about (the resolutions),… Haslam, who has been campaigning for Republican state legislative candidates this week, said, “I understand, and believe me, I’m not at all excited about Hillary Trump — Hillary Clinton — as president, and I did not vote for her. I’ll say that really clearly.”

After voting, Haslam cited his concerns with the GOP’s direction.

” I’ve said before, I have some real concerns about the long-term future of the Republican Party when we’re losing the way we are with women and minorities and millennials. That’s a concern to me,” the governor added. “Long term, I have all the faith in the world that our party will continue to represent the things it’s represented.”

… Asked about the governor’s remarks, Brent Leatherwood, executive director of the Tennessee Republican Party, said: “You know what wins over voters of all stripes in the long-term? Policies that promote opportunity. That’s exactly what the governor is out there touting across the state today.”

—

Note: Haslam had a similar comment in Memphis on the GOP’s future. As reported by WNAT: “We have to have a party that appeals to the broader sense, to women, to minorities, to young people, areas we have not traditionally done well… And I’m afraid we’re going to struggle at that this year as well.”