DETROIT — Michigan Republicans are gathering in Detroit on Saturday to elect a new chair who will lead the party into the 2026 midterms in the battleground state, when several key races will be decided including a critical U.S. Senate seat.
After a tumultuous few years for the party defined by infighting, here is what’s at stake.
Three Republicans are asking party delegates for their votes.
The most well-known candidate is Meshawn Maddock, a MAGA activist, close ally to President Donald Trump and former party co-chair. Maddock faces eight forgery and conspiracy charges in an alleged false elector case stemming from the 2020 election.
Maddock refuted the charges, saying the prosecution is politically motivated and she believes the charges will be dropped.
Trump endorsed Maddock for the party chair position Thursday.
State Sen. Jim Runestad also is seeking the chairmanship. First elected to the state House of Representatives, Runestad has served 11 years in the statehouse.
Rounding out the choices is Joseph Cella, a former Trump ambassador to Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga and Tuvalu.
Fifteen Republicans are accused of participating in a plan to falsely claim to be presidential electors for Trump in the 2020 election, despite Joe Biden’s victory in Michigan that year. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, dropped charges against a 16th defendant after reaching a cooperation deal.
The defendants have denied their actions were illegal. Each were criminally charged with eight counts of forgery and conspiracy in the case alleging the group signed a document during a December 2020 meeting at the Michigan Republican headquarters falsely stating they were the state’s “duly elected and qualified electors.” The fake certificates were ignored.
Biden won Michigan by nearly 155,000 votes over then-President Donald Trump in 2020, a result confirmed by a GOP-led state Senate investigation in 2021.
Maddock and the other defendants are currently waiting for a county district judge to decide if there is enough evidence for the case to proceed to trial. The next court date is scheduled for March 28, about a month after the GOP convention.
Michigan is set to be a key state to watch in the 2026 midterms, when Democrats will try to end Republicans’ control of the U.S. House and Senate in hopes of blunting Trump’s agenda.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Gary Peters recently shocked the political world when he announced he is not seeking reelection, opening up a competitive seat. In 2024, Democrat Elissa Slotkin narrowly defeated Republican Mike Rogers for a seat in the U.S. Senate.
Rogers came within less than 1 percentage point in November and is planning to run again. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is weighing whether to run.
Additionally, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is term limited and names are lining up to replace her. Control of the state House of Representatives and Senate are on the line, as well as the offices of attorney general, secretary of state and two state Supreme Court seats.
Whoever Republicans choose will take over a party still recovering from a chaotic period defined by infighting and financial woes that started with a convention vote. A grassroots revolution in 2023 ushered in party chair Kristiana Karamo, a political newcomer who denied the results of the 2020 election.
Party finances tanked under her tenure, eventually forcing some Michigan Republicans, national Republicans and Trump himself to replace her with former congressman and ambassador Pete Hoekstra. Hoekstra is not seeking the position again as Trump has nominated him to serve as ambassador to Canada.
Across town, Democrats also are picking their next party chair Saturday.
Former state lawmaker and congressional candidate Curtis Hertel Jr. is expected to be selected for the role. Hertel unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House in the 2024 election, losing to former state lawmaker and Army veteran Tom Barrett by nearly 4 percentage points.