GRAND RAPIDS, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Former President Donald Trump’s influence over the Michigan Republican Party continues, as his preferred candidates, Matt DePerno for attorney general and Kristina Karamo for secretary of state, won the endorsement Saturday of Michigan Republican Party delegates.
Kalamazoo attorney DePerno won the nod in a runoff vote against former Michigan Speaker of the House Tom Leonard. Leonard lost to current Attorney General Dana Nessel in November 2018.
Karamo, a community college professor from Oak Park, won her party’s endorsement on the first ballot at the state G.O.P. convention in Grand Rapids Saturday. She will square off against current Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson in November.
Both DePerno and Karamo had been endorsed by Trump, who held a fundraiser in Florida featuring DePerno last month.
Both DePerno and Karamo have made claims of fraud concerning the 2020 election. Trump’s loss in Michigan although has been upheld by more than 200 audits, a series of court rulings and an investigation by the GOP-controlled state Senate Oversight Committee.
Former New York city mayor and Donald Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani was among those in attendance at the convention.
Michigan does not hold primary elections for a number of down-ballot races, including the secretary of state and attorney general. Instead, Republicans and Democrats endorse and nominate candidates for November’s general election at party conventions.
