The race for Colorado Republican Party leadership heated up this week as state chair candidates Jeff Hays and George Athanasopoulos each questioned his opponent’s depth of support for Donald Trump.

Hays, the outgoing chairman of the El Paso County Republican Party, and Athanasopoulos, who lost a bid last year challenging U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, are vying for the Colorado Republican Party chair position, which will be decided when the state central committee meets on April 1.

After some officials with the Colorado Trump campaign issued a controversial endorsement of Hays on Wednesday, Athanasopoulos reminded Republicans that he had been among the first candidates in the state to endorse Trump.

Calling the Trump team’s endorsement of Hays “so preposterous as to be ridiculous,” Athanasopoulos charged that Hays and his supporters “represent exactly the party that Donald Trump had to defeat on his way to becoming president.”

Not so fast, the Hays camp shot back, pointing out that Athanasopoulos may well have endorsed Trump in June, but he cast a ballot for Trump rival Texas Sen. Ted Cruz at the Republican National Convention more than a month later, despite attending the convention as an unpledged delegate free to vote for Trump.

“To say he endorsed Trump and then he wouldn’t vote for him at the convention – that’s a flip-flop,” Hays campaign spokeswoman Katey Price told The Colorado Statesman.

“George may have endorsed Trump on June 8, but when he went to Cleveland, he was unpledged,” Price added. “To say he was unpledged but he was pledged to Cruz is just a flip-flop.”

Athanasopoulos countered that he was keeping his promise to the Republicans who elected him as one of three 7th Congressional District delegates to the RNC, on April 7, when the GOP presidential primary was still in full swing.

“I told the people who elected me I was going to vote for Cruz if he was an option,” Athanasopoulos said. “I kept my promise to the people who elected me as a delegate.”

In an interview with The Statesman, Athanasopoulos spoke slowly, sounding like he was working to contain his anger.

“I was elected by people who were adamantly pro-Cruz. I thought at the time Cruz was the best choice. I’ve never been shy about it, I’ve never hidden from it,” he said.

“The fact that the Hays campaign is trying to use this shows just how desperate they are. This is not a secret to anybody,” Athanasopoulos added. “This type of desperate hail Mary is pathetic.”

The 37-member Colorado delegation to the RNC drew national attention when members cast 33 votes for Cruz and four for Trump, mirroring Cruz’s near sweep of delegates in the state and congressional district conventions. (The four roll call votes for Trump were cast by three unpledged delegates – state party chairman Steve House, Republican National Committeewoman Lily Nuñez and Arapahoe County GOP chair Joy Hoffman – and Cruz delegate Brita Horn, who switched her vote.)

“The fact remains George endorsed Trump, but he was free to vote for whoever he wanted to at the convention,” Price said. “He could have backed up his promise of endorsing Trump but instead he went to the convention and he backed Ted Cruz.”

She noted that Hays, a county party officer, had remained neutral until Trump was the Republican nominee, as GOP rules require, and then enthusiastically endorsed him.

Athanasopoulos added he could hardly believe the Hays camp was raising the issue.

“I know there’s a portion of the Republican Party that believes keeping promises is a novel concept,” he said. “But the people who elected me as a delegate, and other Republicans, expect it.”

Republicans are meeting across Colorado throughout February to elect county officers and bonus members to the state central committee. Those members, along with Republican elected officials, convene Saturday, April 1, at Englewood High School to elect statewide officers to two-year terms.

The candidates for the two other elected positions – state GOP secretary Brandi Meek, who is seeking a second term, and vice chair candidate Sherrie Gibson, a Colorado Springs organizer – are so far unopposed.

– ernest@coloradostatesman.com