Michigan Republicans select election denier Kristina Karamo as state party chair

Michigan Republicans on Saturday elected Kristina Karamo as their state party chair, putting the election-denying anti-abortion extremist at the helm of the party for the 2024 presidential cycle.

Karamo was elected leader of the Michigan Republican Party despite having lost the race for secretary of state in November to incumbent Democrat Jocelyn Benson by 14 points in a state that President Joe Biden narrowly carried by fewer than 3 points in 2020.

Karamo bested Matthew DePerno, who lost his own race for Michigan attorney general in 2022, in the running for party chair in the third round of voting. According to the Washington Post, Karamo supporters disliked DePerno, an election denier who had the endorsement of former President Donald Trump for state party chair, because he conceded his 9-point defeat in the general election.

Her victory is a sign that Republicans did not moderate after their 2022 electoral drubbing in the state, where Democrats won full control of state government for the first time in 40 years.

“In electing Kristina Karamo as party chair, they’ve solidified Democratic control of this state for years to come,” Nolan Finley, the conservative editorial page editor of the Detroit News, wrote in an opinion column published on Feb. 18. “With their decision, these delegates have killed the Michigan Republican Party as a political home for principled conservatives hoping to mount a counter-offensive to ruinous progressive policies. It is officially a fringe outfit.”

Karamo has expressed a laundry list of extremist positions.

In November, she unsuccessfully sued Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey and the City of Detroit Board of Election Inspectors to block absentee voting in the Democratic stronghold. She also refused to concede her 2022 loss to Benson, despite a difference of more than 615,000 votes.

Karamo is also an anti-abortion extremist. Karamo said during the 2022 election that she does not believe in abortion, and said fighting abortion is “the reason I got into politics.” She also said abortion is “far more wicked than slavery,” and called abortion “child sacrifice.”

Karamo has also declared herself an “anti-vaxxer,” called evolution “one of the biggest frauds ever perpetuated on society,” and called public schools “government indoctrination camps.”

Karamo has also said she believes in “demons“; accused music artists Ariana Grande and Billie Eilish of putting children “under a satanic delusion”; and said Beyoncé is “trying to target Black people into embracing paganism.”

Democratic leaders warned that Karamo’s election as head of the Michigan Republican Party could spell trouble for voters in the state.

“Karamo will undoubtably use her new platform as MI GOP Chair to continue to file frivolous lawsuits in an effort to undermine MI elections and disenfranchise MI voters,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel tweeted on Monday.

Karamo seemingly confirmed Nessel’s warning in response.

“Well, well, @dananessel you and your pack of tyrants are clearly on notice, the days of a milk-toast Republican Party are OVER!” Karamo tweeted on Monday, misspelling the word “milquetoast.”

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.