AUSTIN -- After six months as chairman of the Travis County Republican Party, controversial conspiracy buff Robert Morrow is officially out.
In a fittingly odd finale, Morrow crashed a Friday morning press conference called by party members to announce the coup. According to party officials, Morrow's decision to file as a write-in candidate for the 2016 presidential election resulted in the forfeiture of his county chairmanship under state election laws.
"That resulted in an immediate vacancy, just as if he'd resigned," explained acting Travis County Republican Party chair David Duncan, pointing to write-in candidate paperwork filed by Morrow on August 19.
"In the back of my mind, I kinda figured it might be a problem, but I was going to run for president anyhow, because I hate Trump," Morrow told reporters, holding his own impromptu press conference after being asked to leave the building. Acknowledging the law, Morrow announced he's fine with relinquishing his seat.
"I'd rather be president than the chairman of the Travis County Republican Party," said Morrow. "Granted, my odds are probably one in a billion, but then again, that's about the same odds as Donald Trump being elected president."
The six month Morrow administration reached its crescendo with the Republican chairman protesting presidential nominee Donald Trump's appearance in Austin. A giant sign reading "Trump is a child rapist" -- a reference to an obscure New York lawsuit -- earned him a quick ejection from the grounds of the Travis County Exposition Center.
"He has been damaging to the party in many of the comments he's made, not just about Trump," said Duncan. "Many of our traditional donors have been very hesitant to give money to the party after watching Mr. Morrow's antics."
Voters elected Morrow to office by a margin of eight percentage points, but an executive committee will elect a new chair September 20. Duncan is among many who believe the election was a fluke and told KVUE he's not expecting a voter backlash.
"Not at all," said Duncan. "I think that most people did not realize who or what he was."
The divorce final, the party is anxious to leave the Morrow era behind.
Yet before leaving, the county chair-turned-presidential hopeful offered reporters a preview of his self-described libertarian Republican platform. The key word: "Boobyliciousness."
"I wanna promote 'boobyliciousness' every day," said Morrow. "I wanna start having bikini contests on the south lawn of the White House. Every Fourth of July, I want to have a wet t-shirt contest. I think this would be a way of bringing America together and deescalating political tensions."
So, with a final escort out of the building, it's back to the campaign trail.