The chairman of the Limestone County Republican Executive Committee says a former Athens police detective was prevented from running for sheriff on the GOP ticket because he ‘is not a Republican’ — not because he is gay.

Noah Wahl responded to the issue involving candidate Jason White in a statement released Thursday. Two-thirds of the committee voted Tuesday to reject White’s request for ballot access. The vote followed hours of private committee discussion.

“The news media can try to make this about Mr. White’s sexual orientation, but that would be extremely dishonest to the people of Limestone County,” Wahl said in the statement. “The challenge to Mr. White’s request for candidacy as a Republican was simple, was he a Republican? After careful deliberation the committee could not answer that question with a yes.”

Although White, 40, ran for sheriff as a Republican in 2002, he was defeated in the primary election.

White, who said he became openly gay in 2003, told The News Courier after Tuesday’s vote he believes his sexual orientation was the reason for his rejection. He said he has been a Republican since he was 18.

White married and divorced a woman and later married the first openly gay Navy SEAL in 2014 in Indiana. The two men co-own a security company in Huntsville.

As further evidence that White is not a Republican, Wahl said, “Jason White does not attend or take part in any Republican events or organizations. There is no record of him making a contribution to any Republican candidate. Mr. White supported a candidate running against President Donald Trump in the 2016 general election. Supporting a candidate running against the Republican nominee for President of the United States is extremely serious.”

White said Thursday he has openly supported other Republicans at public forums, including sheriff candidate Eric Smith and numerous other Republicans, though he has never donated to another campaign other than his own.

Wahl said White was not directly asked how he voted in the presidential race. Instead, a committee member told White they had heard White did not support Donald Trump and asked him to address that. According to Wahl, White replied that was correct and he had voted for Gary Johnson.

Wahl also pointed to White’s firing from the Athens Police Department for violating policy regarding running a license tag through the crime information system. White sued over the firing, saying he was actually fired for reporting corruption within the department to the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, which prompted an investigation of the department. White’s lawsuit, however, was later dismissed.

“We are also talking about a candidate with a concerning record regarding law enforcement,” Wahl said in his statement. “The Republican party is the party of limited government and constitutional rights. It seems Jason White was fired from the Athens police department for breaking the public’s right to privacy that is guaranteed under the 4th Amendment. The Limestone GOP expects our public servants to uphold their oaths to the Constitution.”

Wahl went on to say, “Primary voters trust the Republican Party to set forth candidates who are Republicans, and not Independents or Democrats. It was the committee’s duty to take a vote on the very difficult issue of whether Jason White was a Republican. As Chairman, I did not cast a vote on this matter. I stood fully ready to back the decision of the committee whatever they decided. I believe each individual of the committee made an honest and carefully thought through choice with the facts in this case.”

In closing, Wahl complained about the media’s reporting of the vote’s outcome and White’s belief that he was rejected over his sexual orientation.

“I am extremely disappointed that the news media has chosen to slander the Limestone County Republican Party with this allegation of discrimination.”

State GOP chief responds

Terry Lathan, head of the Alabama Republican Party, also responded to a request for comment on White’s claim he was rejected for his orientation.

When asked whether the state GOP prevents openly gay candidates from running for local and state offices, she said orientation would have no bearing.

“Out of hundreds of GOP candidates, it is a very small number that we may deny ballot access. Our decisions are made on if we believe a candidate is using our party as a path to win an election when they are really not a Republican,” she said. “We focus on those issues. It is up to the applicant to make that case for themselves. The county parties give the candidates a fair and thorough opportunity to make their case if asked. We take this very seriously and want the voters to make the choices when at all possible.”

When asked if the state party requires prospective candidates to say who they voted for in the last presidential election, she said, “We do not require that answer, but it’s a fair ask. If a candidate has been supporting members of another party, it is not unusual to ask them why the change. Voters will want to know that also. Many have good answers. Some do not.”

When asked how a committee would know the truth of a prospective candidate’s answer, Lathan said, “In reality, we do not have a way on knowing their answer but we take their word unless we find out differently. Who voted in what primary and general election is public record but not how the person voted on their private ballot.”