Ron Weiser and his co-chair Meshawn Maddock defeated incumbent Laura Cox in a landslide victory at the Republican State Convention on Saturday, receiving 66% of the vote.
“Meshawn and I are honored and excited to lead the party over the next two critical years. Our overwhelming victory today is just the beginning. The beginning of our road to victory in 2022. The beginning of a better, brighter future for our children, for our families. The beginning of unifying our party,” Weiser said in a statement.
“The skirmishes of yesterday are over. Our focus now rests on the great challenges before us: Rebuilding our party. Defeating Whitmer, Nessel, Benson and other far-left radicals. We must strengthen our House and Senate majorities. We must win back the Supreme Court and the Board of Education. The time is now to focus on the great challenges before us. We are unified by a common goal, a vital aspiration to improve our lives, our state and our nation. To that end, Meshawn and I have assembled an extraordinary team. We have a tremendous plan. And we will win in 2022.”
The skirmishes Weiser mentions is a reference to a last-ditch effort made by his opponent Laura Cox. Although Cox had publicly withdrawn from the chair race in January, she changed her mind just two days prior to Saturday’s convention. She asked delegates to reelect her, while also bringing false allegations against Weiser.
Ultimately, Cox’s political stunt backfired, with Michigan GOP delegates viewing it as a dishonest smear campaign and a failed attempt to burn down the party on her way out the door.
“I am deeply saddened by Laura Cox’s baseless allegations against Ron Weiser who is a kind, honest man,” said Republican Delegate Keith Den Hollander. “Ron has dedicated so much of his time and resources in support of this Party. This is the sort of attacks we usually see coming from the left. So unfortunate to see from our own.”
On social media, Republican activists have dubbed Weiser/Maddock the “Dream Team” with Weiser being one of the best Republican fundraisers in the country, and Maddock one of the best grassroots organizers our state has ever seen.
Their work is cut out for them in 2022. Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Attorney General Dana Nessel, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson are all Democrats up for reelection next year. Republicans will need to be more united than ever to take back control of the state.
Let’s not forget that it was Weiser who served as chair in 2010 when Michigan Republicans won the races for Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, and Michigan Supreme Court. Republicans also gained 4 seats in the State Senate and 18 seats in the State House, which swayed the majority in their favor.
Meshawn Maddock served as co-chair of Oakland County and Michigan Women for Trump and was a critical piece in organizing the grassroots and helping Donald Trump win Michigan and the presidency in 2016.
The time for talk and party infighting is over. Let’s give our new leadership the support they need and get to work to win the important battles of 2022.
