A near-perennial Republican candidate has emerged to be the face of the Beaufort County Republican Party beyond the 2012 election.

Greg Dority, a self-described security consultant, was elected chairman of the county GOP on Tuesday night by a unanimous vote of the convention delegates on hand.

No other nominees were floated for the post.

Dority, a Washington resident, replaces outgoing Chairman Larry Britt, who did not seek re-election.

“I expect the chairmanship to be a full-time job, and that’s where I’ll focus my efforts,” Dority said in an interview following the vote.

He said the party’s priorities will continue to be maintaining a GOP majority on the Beaufort County Board of Commissioners and keeping state Rep. Bill Cook, R-Beaufort, in office.

Cook represents Beaufort County and northeast Pitt County in the N.C. General Assembly.

Another goal is to capture the state Senate seat currently held by Sen. Stan White, D-Dare, according to Dority.

White represents Beaufort County and other northeast counties near the coast.

Dority said “our first concern” is legislative redistricting, the redrawing of state House, Senate and congressional maps.

Redistricting is done by the N.C. General Assembly every 10 years following each census.

Parts of eastern North Carolina are expected to lose legislative clout through this process because of population growth in more-crowded portions of the state.

Dority said he and “senior Republican elements” already had traveled to Raleigh several times “to work with the leadership.”

He said that on Wednesday he would be consulting with “the top Senate leadership” as chairman of the county GOP.

“It’s critical that Beaufort County not be split in either the new House or new Senate district, and we feel cautiously optimistic that we’ll be able to work with the new Charlotte-based leadership in meeting these goals,” Dority stated.

He declined to name who had been to Raleigh to advocate on the county’s behalf.

“This started probably a month ago, and we’ve been up there a few times,” Dority commented.

Dority has made multiple attempts at winning elective offices.

He first ran for Congress in 2002, losing to then-U.S. Rep. Frank Ballance, D-N.C.

Ballance later stepped down amid corruption charges and eventually went to prison.

In 2004, Dority launched a bid to unseat U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield, who replaced Ballance in Congress.

In 2008, Dority tried to achieve the GOP’s nod to be its lieutenant-governor nominee, but that try also proved unsuccessful.

Last year, Dority ran against U.S. Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C.

In a three-person contest, the Republican was rebuffed by the Charlotte incumbent, who beat Dority by more than 48,000 votes.

This is Dority’s first stint as party chairman.

In other business, the conventioneers elected Tony Keech first vice chairman of the party and Rick Gagliano second vice chairman.

Pam Nuckols was elected secretary while David Cox retained his place as party treasurer.