LANSING, Mich., November 13, 2019 – On Wednesday, Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox called on Mayor Mike Duggan to fire members of his administration embroiled in the "Dategate" including Ryan Friedrichs, the husband of Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Chief of Staff Alexis Wiley. Cox’s call for dismissals comes after The Detroit News reported on Tuesday that five of Duggan's aides were at the center of a search warrant executed on Friday by the Michigan Attorney General’s office. The warrant sought any and all electronic records associated with the Dategate scandal - records which Wiley and Friedrichs illegally ordered their staff to delete. “The deeper we get into this investigation of the 'Dategate' scandal, the clearer it becomes that Alexis Wiley and Ryan Friedrichs should be fired for misconduct and their lack of transparency,” said Laura Cox, Chairman of the Michigan Republican Party. Cox continued, “It’s time that someone be held accountable for this troubling use of taxpayer resources and the massive cover-up that followed.” Last month, the Detroit Inspector General found that Friedrichs and other members of Duggan’s staff abused their offices when they ordered employees to delete public emails involving the scandal. However, instead of holding the staffers accountable, the mayor’s office assigned the staffers additional training. The matter is currently being further investigated by the Public Integrity Unit of the Attorney General's Office. More >

LANSING, Mich., November 13, 2019 – The following is a statement from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox regarding the lawsuit filed today by liberal Super PAC Priorities USA, seeking to undermine two key provisions of Michigan election law - the prohibition on paid bussing to the polls, and removing restrictions on the ability of third parties to deliver absentee ballot applications to election officials. “This lawsuit is yet another example of the Democrats and their allies trying to weaken Michigan election laws that were put in place to stop voter fraud. In states without strong absentee ballot protections we have seen numerous examples of massive vote harvesting, and other forms of election fraud. The Michigan Republican Party will fight any attempt to undermine the integrity of our states elections or the security of our citizens ballots.” More >

LANSING, Mich., November 11, 2019 – State Budget negotiations broke down last week after Governor Gretchen Whitmer refused to relinquish controversial executive powers which she used to reallocate over $600 million in state budget funding. Whitmer’s refusal comes as Republicans fight to restore over $900 million which was vetoed by the governor. Much of which was needed by the state’s most vulnerable citizens and communities. While Whitmer has opposed signing any bill which limits her executive powers, she has pledged not to use her powers to reallocate any funding agreed to in this round of negations. This begs the question “can the people of Michigan trust Gretchen Whitmer not to break her promises?” “History shows Governor Gretchen Whitmer cannot be trusted.” said Laura Cox Michigan Republican Party Chairman. Cox continued, “As a candidate for governor, Gretchen Whitmer made dozens of promises to the people of Michigan. These promises have since been broken in Governor Whitmer’s quest to impose a 45-cent gas tax that Michiganders don’t want. She has lied to our state’s most vulnerable citizens and held them hostage in a crisis of her own making. If Whitmer wants to restore her credibility, she must do the honorable thing and limit these controversial powers which have come under the criticism of both political parties.” The Michigan Republican Party has attached to this release a document containing a list of promises broken by the Governor during her 11 months in power. More >

LANSING, Mich., November 5, 2019 – The following statement is from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox regarding Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist’s letter to state legislators asking them to trust Governor Whitmer regarding her possible use of State Administrative Board transfers in 2020 budget negotiations. “There are 625 million reasons why the people of Michigan shouldn’t trust Governor Whitmer to use her State Administrative Board transfers responsibly. The fact that she’s trying to solve this self-made crisis by getting her hands on the $947 million she vetoed is alarming. Gretchen Whitmer has shown that she couldn’t run a Lemonade stand let alone the State of Michigan. I’m sure her lack of credibility was what led to this letter being sent from Lt. Governor Gilchrist instead of the Governor herself.” More >

LANSING, Mich., October 31, 2019 – The following statement is from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox regarding today’s decision by Judge Michael Kelly ruling that the law passed in 2018 creating an authority to oversee the construction of a Line 5 pipeline tunnel is constitutional. The ruling was necessitated after Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel ruled that the law violated the Michigan constitution, and Governor Gretchen Whitmer suspended construction of the tunnel. “I applaud today’s decision which upholds Michigan law and pushes back against an abuse of executive power. Since taking office, Dana Nessel and Gretchen Whitmer have abused their power to push their progressive political agendas, instead of defending the laws of our state. I hope that they accept this ruling, and that construction can begin soon on a project which will bring jobs to Northern Michigan and help protect our Great Lakes.” More >

LANSING, Mich., October 31, 2019 – The following statement is from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox regarding today’s U.S. House vote formally establishing the impeachment inquiry. “Once again Elissa Slotkin and Haley Stevens have put the best interests of the Democrat party ahead of the best interests of our nation. For the past three years, Democrats have been trying to overturn the will of American voters, by re-litigating the 2016 election. Now, only a year before Americans head to the polls to vote on President Trump’s historic record, Democrats are trying to shamefully throw him out office because they know they can’t beat him at the polls.” More >

LANSING, Mich., October 23, 2019 – The following statement is from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox regarding newly released polling by Fox 2 Detroit and WLNS 6 Lansing, showing President Trump with a stronger approval rating than Governor Whitmer, and the Michigan Senate race in a dead heat. “The polling released shows that our state is the key to the 2020 elections. The Michigan Republican Party stands ready to put President Trump back in the White House next year, and send a Republican to the U.S. Senate for the first time in decades. Meanwhile, Governor Whitmer’s 26% approval rating shows that the people of Michigan are fed up with failed Democrat leadership.” More >

In Case You Missed It, Michigan Senator Gary Peters had the worst week ever. From being outraised in the third-quarter, to having to defend his position on Medicare for All, it looks like Peters is struggling to defend his Senate seat. The most unknown Senator in the country is up for re-election and it looks like he is in for a bumpy ride Peters Slips in Fundraising On Tuesday, The Hill reported that Peters' Republican challenger had significantly cut into the Senator's financial advantage. John James, who raised $3.1 dollars, brought in over $600,000 more than the first term democrat. Dave Eggert with the AP wrote "Peters is one of two Democratic senators up for re-election in a state won by President Donald Trump. Outside of Alabama, Michigan may be the GOP’s best opportunity to target an incumbent." Dave Eggert with the AP wrote "Peters is one of two Democratic senators up for re-election in a state won by President Donald Trump. Outside of Alabama, Michigan may be the GOP’s best opportunity to target an incumbent." A Double Dose of Bad Polling On Thursday, Morning Consult released its latest quarterly Senator Approval Rankings which outlined that Peters’ approval rating is still underwater with Michigan voters. Senator Peters remains the least known member of the Senate, with 37 percent of Michigan voters saying they don’t know who he is, or have no opinion about him. In addition, another 28 percent of voters disapprove of the job he is doing. To add to Peters’ reelection worries, Marketing Resource Group released new polling in the battleground... More >

Peters Gets Double Dose of Bad Polling LANSING, Mich., October 17, 2019 – Today, Morning Consult released its latest quarterly Senator Approval Rankings which showed that Gary Peters’ approval rating continues to be underwater with Michigan voters. Peters continues to be the least known member of the Senate with 37 percent of Michigan voters saying they don’t know who he is, or have no opinion about him. In addition, another 28 percent of voters disapprove of the job he is doing. To add to Peters’ reelection worries, polling group MRG also released new polling today showing Republican Senate candidate John James in a statistical tie with Peters, polling within the four point margin of error. This comes just days after federal fundraising reports show that James significantly outraised Peters in third-quarter fundraising. "Gary Peters has accomplished nothing in the Senate, and it should come as no surprise that he is struggling with Michigan voters.”, said Laura Cox, Michigan Republican Party Chairman. Cox continued, “Michigan is ready for renewed leadership in Washington, and the Michigan Republican Party is looking forward to giving us a Senator who will fight for our state in D.C." More >

MIGOP Statement on conclusion of the Democrat Debate LANSING, Mich., October 15, 2019 – The following statement is from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox regarding tonight’s Democrat Primary Debate: "Yet again the 2020 Democrats support for reckless socialist schemes was on display tonight. Their policies will destroy Michigan’s thriving economy and make our country weaker. There is not a single candidate on that stage who could beat President Trump, or deliver the type of results he has for Americans the past four years." More >