A new Michigan Republican group made up of a former party leader, an ex-congressperson, and previous state lawmakers is throwing its support behind Michigan’s Democratic governor.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s re-election campaign said Monday that over 150 people are part of "Republicans for Whitmer."
Jim Haveman served in the administrations of Republican governors John Engler and Rick Snyder. He said he wasn’t impressed with Republican nominee Tudor Dixon’s agenda.
“I didn’t see any understanding of policy. I didn’t see any platform. I haven’t seen any direction, what she plans to do,” Haveman said.
Earlier in the day, Dixon announced plans to detail her public safety agenda Tuesday afternoon.
Haveman is now serving on the Republicans for Whitmer leadership council alongside over 30 others.
Whitmer said this is an opportunity to welcome new support from voters who may have voted Republican in past elections.
“I think that there are a lot of people in our state who maybe have never voted for a Democrat before who are worried about losing their personal rights to their own bodies, or who are worried about the state of our democracy, who support public education. These are people we want to reach out to,” Whitmer said.
In response to the group’s formation, Dixon’s team said it’s focused instead on winning over voters who may be unhappy with Whitmer’s policies and the direction of the Democratic party.
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