DETROIT – Recently-ousted Michigan Republican Party chairperson Kristina Karamo took a major blow Wednesday when the national Republican party officially recognized former Congressman Pete Hoekstra as her replacement.
Earlier this year, members of the Michigan GOP met and voted to remove Karamo from her position as chairwoman. Party members elected Hoekstra to take her place as chair soon after. Karamo, however, has refused to accept her removal and asserts that she maintains control of the party.
Already problematic infighting among the Michigan Republican Party has only worsened in recent weeks with Karamo and Hoekstra both claiming the role of chair. Karamo has maintained control of the party’s official email account and routinely sends communications from it. The party’s new leadership had to create a new email address to send their messages.
The executive committee of the Republican National Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 15 voted unanimously to officially recognize Hoekstra as the chair of the Michigan GOP. In this role, Hoekstra is considered a voting member of the national party.
The RNC also affirmed that Karamo was properly removed from her position as chair -- something Karamo has continued to debate. The national Republican party first announced in January that, based on its initial review, the removal process for Karamo was handled properly. The RNC confirmed the same findings this week.
Rejecting the RNC’s decision, Karamo sent an email from the official Michigan GOP account on Wednesday morning saying she will continue to lead the party.
Karamo, an election conspiracist, became a familiar name in Michigan politics when she ran as the Republican candidate for Michigan secretary of state in 2022. She was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, and helped push his “big lie” of election fraud. Karamo lost that race to incumbent Democrat Jocelyn Benson by 14 points.
After losing the election in 2022, Karamo was elected to lead the Michigan GOP in early 2023, lasting through the presidential election in 2024. She took the helm of a party already struggling with infighting and debt at a time when Republicans were becoming increasingly divided over whether to support Trump. She also took on the leadership role at a time when Democrats had a majority in Michigan’s House, Senate and governor’s office for the first time in decades.
With a major election year underway in 2024 -- both for local and national offices -- members grew concerned over Karamo’s ability to fundraise, unite the party, and secure victories for Republican candidates. A majority of the party’s congressional district chairs eventually called on Karamo to resign.
A lawsuit was filed by members of the party in January in an effort to get the court to officially declare that Karamo was removed from her role. Karamo filed a motion to dismiss the case, and the hearing on that motion is scheduled for Feb. 20.
While the RNC’s decision lends some legitimacy to Hoekstra’s position, the final decision about who leads the Michigan GOP is expected to come from the courts. Karamo argues that the RNC has no legal authority to decide who leads the state party, and that the national party has “disregarded” the state party’s bylaws.
The battle among the Michigan GOP comes amid a year when eyes will be on the battleground state. Trump won Michigan’s electoral votes in 2016, but lost them to current U.S. President Joe Biden in 2020.
Some Republicans, including voters and elected officials, believe the GOP will be more successful if they distance themselves from Trump altogether. The former president has endorsed Hoekstra as the state party’s leader, and is scheduled to visit Michigan this weekend amid the party chaos.
There are also multiple down-ballot races that could potentially flip the state House -- which had a Democratic majority before two Democrats vacated their seats in 2023. In a statement Wednesday, Hoekstra said the party “must put our nose to the grindstone over the next several months and focus on party unit to secure a red-wave victory in November.”