Michigan’s Republican Party has passed a “resolution of intent” that would allocate only 16 of the state’s 55 delegates on primary election night, with the remaining 39 to be chosen through caucuses four days later. The move has been criticised for benefiting former President Donald Trump, as the caucus-goers who will select the vast majority of delegates are expected to be Trump supporters. Kristina Karamo, Michigan state party chair, claims that the Republican National Committee (RNC) had input into the plan, in discussions with the entire RNC team and RNC legal. An RNC official has denied that the committee had any role in creating the plan, stating that it had only provided general guidance.
The plan could be seen as stacking the deck in favour of Trump and has been criticised by his opponents. Steve Laffey, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, called the decision “rigged” and “defying logic” and said that it would prevent the will of the people. Meanwhile, former vice chair of the state party, Michael Schostak, warned that the precinct delegates who will be selecting the vast majority of delegates are overwhelmingly Trump supporters. Dennis Lennox, a Michigan Republican strategist, accused Karamo of being the “last person that any credible or serious Republican should listen to”.
The decision to allocate delegates through a caucus system came about because the Democratic-led legislature moved the state’s primary up in the calendar. The February 27 date the legislature approved conflicted with RNC rules that bar state parties from holding a nominating contest prior to March 1, except for Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. The Republican Party has therefore shifted to a caucus in order to prevent a penalty being imposed.
Coordination between campaigns and state and national party officials is critical due to RNC rules that require state parties’ nomination proposals to be submitted by October 1 for approval. Karamo claims that she is confident of gaining approval from the RNC, having worked with the national party on the plan. However, critics warn that the plan could disenfranchise up to a million Michigan voters who vote in the primary, as their preferences may not be reflected by the far smaller group able to participate in the caucus.
Original Story at abcnews.go.com – 2023-06-16 17:59:51
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