(UnitedHeadlines.com) – On Jan. 13, infighting with the Michigan Republican Party resulted in two separate chairs, just one month before the state’s primary Feb. 27. Michigan is poised to play a significant role in the 2024 election and the race for the White House.
The fighting within the party began Jan. 6, when 40 party members voted to remove Kristina Karamo from her post as chair. Karamo disputed the decision to remove her as chair, arguing the meeting was “illegitimate” and not in compliance with party bylaws. Her refusal to accept her removal led to a Jan. 13 vote by a majority of the party members, who voted to keep Karamo in her position.
In a video posted Jan. 13 to the party’s Twitter account, she said she looks “forward to serving you, serving Michigan.”
Some of those who voted Jan. 6 to remove Karamo then disputed the results of the Jan. 13 vote, stating that Karamo was no longer in charge. The party members who voted Karamo out then voted to appoint co-chair Malinda Pego to serve as acting chair. In a Jan. 13 letter with party letterhead, the party members claimed that role was still in effect, stating they are recognizing co-chair Malinda Pego as the new acting chair of the party until a new chair is named and that Pego would then remain as a co-chair.
However, the Jan. 13 post to the party’s Twitter account stated that the vote that put Karamo back into her role as chair also removed Pego from the vice chair role and banned her from any official party affiliations for five years.
Karamo, who denied the results of the 2020 election, ran in 2022 for Michigan secretary of state, losing by 14 points, the widest margin of any statewide Republican race. In February 2023, she was elected as chair of the party but continued to face criticism from party members who accused her of placing the party at risk of bankruptcy.
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