A racist conspiracy theory, Donald Trump, record lobbyist spending.
There was plenty in the headlines last week. Here is a roundup of Michigan political news.
Trump targets Oakland County voters
The former president and likely Republican nominee for president was in Waterford Township on Saturday. Voters garbed in red, white and blue; flags draped as capes; and various versions of Trump hats waited long in the cold to see the man who will probably again challenge President Joe Biden. And amidst cheers, Trump responded to their adoration with Michigan-tailored talking points.
“Crooked Joe (Biden) has ordered a hit job on Michigan manufacturing with his insane electric vehicle mandate,” Trump told the crowd at the get-out-the-vote rally in the outskirts of Oakland County, the state’s second-most populous.
The nation has lots its way, he said, and “we are not going to allow this horror to continue.”
“We win Michigan, we win the whole ballgame,” Trump said.
Biden flipped the state, winning it and the election in 2020.
Oakland County was blue in 2016 and 2020 – Biden performed better than Hillary Clinton in 2016 and earned about 56% of the votes there – but Trump won Waterford and other townships outside the county’s cities in 2020 and made gains in places like Southfield and Pontiac.
Saturday, he called an auto worker on stage and worked to bolster his blue collar appeal. “A vote for Trump is a vote to keep those manufacturing jobs in America.”
READ MORE: Trump attacks Biden policies, dismisses legal issues in Oakland County speech
‘Hoekstra? He’s unbelievable’
Using some of his typical bromides, Trump at the rally called former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra “incredible” and “unbelievable,” and recognized him as chair of the Michigan Republican Party.
A few days earlier, the Republican National Committee determined Hoekstra, a former ambassador under Trump, is the rightful head of the state GOP.
The RNC initially remained neutral, but convened an eight-member panel to hear arguments Monday, It found the breakaway faction, led by Hoekstra, followed party bylaws when it voted in January to remove Kristina Karamo, whose support diminished as the party struggled to raise money, focused on fringe conspiracies and sowed discord.
Karamo, elected by delegates last year, contests the decision and refuses to concede power. Because she still controls the party’s bank accounts, the issue will almost certainly end up in court.
READ MORE: RNC recognizes Pete Hoekstra as Michigan GOP chair; Karamo ignores decision
Hoekstra urged a union. “Let’s work towards winning for Republican candidates in November.”
Early, in-person votes cast for first time
Meanwhile, Michigan’s presidential primary has already begun.
Though initial contests in Iowa, New Hampshire and elsewhere indicate the 2024 general election will be a Biden-Trump rematch, voters do have some choice.
Reporter Jordyn Hermani outlines the options here.
READ MORE: How to vote and when to do it: A Michigan primary primer
In-person, early voting – instituted by a 2022 voter-approved proposal – kicked off on Saturday. In Ann Arbor, the mayor cast the first ballot, voting for President Joe Biden.
How to participate, however, will vary based on location. The state left it to local election officials to determine the methods of implementing the early, in-person voting mandate.
Benzie County, with 16,900 registered voters, has planned 14 early voting sites – similar to their regular polling places – while Saginaw County’s more than 158,000 voters have just a single place to cast an in-person ballot before election day.
READ MORE: Want to use Michigan’s new early in-person voting? It…
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