Congressman Kustoff speaks at annual Republican Reagan Day Dinner

JACKSON, Tenn — A party coming together.

Friday, the Madison County Republican Party came together for an event laced in history.

“This is our annual fundraiser. We call it our Reagan Day event where we raise money to contribute to the candidates of the Republican party on the local level,” said chairman of the Madison County Republican Party, Mike Peery.

The event took place on the campus of Union University and brought out Republican members from all over the Volunteer State.

District 73 State Representative Jimmy Eldridge said he looks forward to the unity.

“It’s getting stronger and stronger and it’s well organized with great leadership. It’s important it’s organized the way it is so we can talk about the issues and come together for the better of our country,” Eldridge said.

The speaker of the night was Congressman David Kustoff.

Kustoff was elected in November to represent the 8th Congressional District, which includes Madison County.

“It all starts here at the local level and Madison County has sent really good strong republican leaders to the state and federal offices and I’m honored to be here to help out this evening,”  Kustoff said.

In his keynote address, he focused on national security, healthcare and judges.

Friday night’s event could raise up to $18,000 and offered a silent auction.

The fundraiser also brought out potential gubernatorial candidates.

“Nobody cares how much you until they know how much you care so it’s really important to connect to people on the heart level,” said gubernatorial candidate Sen. Mark Green of Cookeville.

“I’m looking for work and I’m looking at possibly applying for a job that might take 6.6 million people to approve but I haven’t decided that yet,” potential gubernatorial candidate Sen. Randy Boyd said.

Overall the theme of the night was unity.

“This is how we build Republican parties across west Tennessee,” Kustoff said.

The event also honored the late Teresa Henson and heard from Scott Golden who is the chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party.

The annual event originally started under the name Lincoln Day but was later changed to the current Reagan Day.