DETROIT (AP) — The ousted former Michigan Republican leader lost a key court decision Thursday in his bid to regain the top job.
The Michigan Court of Appeals said it would not stay a lower court's order confirming Christina Karamo's dismissal from the party.
Karamo had hoped the stay would clear the way for him to lead a meeting in Detroit on Saturday to select a presidential delegation for the party's convention.
Former U.S. Congressman Pete Hoekstra, who is supported by the National Party and former President Donald Trump, has been nominated as the new chairman of the Republican Party. He plans to lead similar meetings in Grand Rapids across the state.
Karamo refused to acknowledge that party members legitimately voted him for office. But on Tuesday, a Kent County judge said the Jan. 6 vote counted and any actions she took after that date were “void and of no effect.”
“This order has brought further confusion to the political process,” Karamo’s lawyer told the appeals court. “This order further disrupts (the parties) by requiring a complete change in the administration of the parties as well as the cancellation or attempted cancellation of leases, contracts and other legal obligations.”
But Hoekstra said he is considered “the duly elected chairman of the Michigan Party.”
“It’s time to put this behind us and get on with the business of electing Republicans in November,” he said Thursday.
Trump easily won the Michigan Republican primary this week over Nikki Haley.
Karamo stepped down from leadership after months of internal fighting over finances and strategy. She has been a Trump supporter and was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for secretary of state in 2023, when she would have won her party's top job.
Karamo's lawyers said, “This is an intra-party dispute that should be resolved through the political process, not through court intervention.”