Some Moore County Republicans will have a say in picking a substitute nominee to replace state Rep. Harold Brubaker on the November ballot.

The former House speaker resigned suddenly last week, throwing the job of naming a replacement for the November election to party executive committee members. The catch is that only committee members who live in Brubaker’s district — House District 78 — will have a vote.

Their choice has to be made by Aug. 23.

District 78 includes parts of several Moore County precincts: all of Carthage, Deep River/High Falls, about half of Westmoore and a tenth of Robbins, according to Glenda Clendenin, director of the Moore County Board of Elections.

Moore County District Attorney Maureen Krueger lives in the Carthage precinct, so she has a vote. So does precinct chair Patricia Chappell and Otis Ritter of High Falls. Most votes will come from Randolph County, however, so there seems little doubt that party members from that county will be able to control the result.

When news of Brubaker’s resignation broke last week, there was talk of trying to get a Moore County Republican into the running. A number of party leaders proposed County Commissioners’ Chairman Larry Caddell, but he’s not for it.

“I have no interest in going to Raleigh,” Caddell said Monday. “I want to complete my term of office here. We have a lot of work to do in Moore County, and that’s what is important to me. I want to be sure my home county is well-prepared for the future.”

Brubaker served many years in the state House of Representatives and was the first Republican House speaker to hold that post since the 19th century. Recently, he was senior budget writer. Moore County’s Richard Morgan was Brubaker’s right-hand man during his eight consecutive terms in the House as rules committee chair, and minority leader.

Joyce Cotten, GOP chairman of the 2nd Congressional District, said the date to submit new names for the 2012 ballot is Aug. 23. A meeting of executive committee members who live in District 78 will be scheduled after conferring with both county chairmen, she said.

Phone calls are coming in from Randolph County Republicans to local executive committee members who live in District 78.

Contact John Chappell at (910) 783-5841 or jfchappell@gmail.com.