BEATTY--Nye County Republicans packed the Beatty Senior Center Saturday, March 8 for the party's county convention.

Republican Central Committee Chairman Fely Quitevis said 215 people attended the convention, but in spite of the strong Republican showing the county still found itself short 201 delegates needed to hold the event.

Although county delegates and alternates were elected at the caucus level months before, Quitevis said only 137 (including alternates) showed up.

Filling the remaining 64 slots led to a lengthy and at times impassioned discussion.

Ultimately, despite the fracas, 65 delegates were elected to the state convention.

Of those, 12 are executive board members who are automatically selected, so convention attendees elected 53 delegates from a list of 96 names.

That vote, overseen by a Nye County Sheriff's Office deputy manning the ballot box, didn't take place before the issue of county delegates was sorted out.

The certification committee's initial appointment of delegates to precincts that were short their required amount was met with a loud outcry of protest, primarily from a block of Ron Paul supporters in attendance.

Sarah Kulkin said both the Republican Central Committee bylaws and state laws were violated when the committee began appointing delegates to precincts without considering whether the appointees lived in the precincts.

"They didn't bother to check to see who lived where," Kulkin said. "It seemed like everyone in the room had a paddle."

A motion to accept the committee's recommendations was still on the floor after lunch, continuing the morning's discussion.

"It's like having a senator from Utah represent Nevada," one convention attendee said.

Andy Alberti, of Pahrump, called a point of order and contended the county convention was for delegates who had been elected at the caucus level and there was a discrepancy between them and the delegates who were being appointed.

He also reminded everyone the main purpose of the convention was to elect delegates to the state convention.

"If we keep that in mind, perhaps we can get out of here before midnight," Co-Chairman Bob Cameron said.

Quitevis said the issue was eventually solved by moving precinct alternates up to delegates, thus making them delegates at large.

Precincts which were still short even after alternates were taken into account had delegates appointed by Quitevis herself.

Most of the outcry over county delegate appointments came from Republicans who supported Ron Paul, the Texas congressman who is still in the race despite Sen. John McCain's success in securing more than enough delegates to receive the nomination at the national convention.

"For us, it's always been about the message, and (Paul) just happens to be at the front of it," Kulkin said. "We're showing that this isn't the end of it. We still want a change in the government."

She added that there was still a chance Paul could receive the nomination because all the other candidates have dropped out and there were still delegates up for grabs, although she did concede it was "a small chance."

Meanwhile, Bill Purcell with National Voter Outreach saw the convention as a way to garner signatures for several petitions including one that urged Nevada to raise the casino tax and allocate the extra revenue for schools.

Once the state delegates were successfully elected, the party went on to approve its platforms.

Overall, Quitevis said the convention went well.

"It went smoothly," Quitevis said. "The Ron Paul people, we gave them enough time on the floor and they were heard. It came out good."