There have been reports of a brokered Michigan Republican nominating convention for weeks now regarding the position of Lieutenant Governor. Even before Tudor Dixon picked former state Rep. Shane Hernandez to be her running mate, former candidates Ryan Kelley and Garrett Soldano were in the mix to “run” for the position even though it’s not exactly something you run for.
The rules of the convention (that will be held on Saturday, August 27th) clearly state that if the submitted candidate doesn’t receive an affirmative vote from the convention floor, then the candidate for governor (Dixon) can address the convention for three minutes, resubmit the same candidate for reconsideration or submit a new candidate’s name. If the second nomination doesn’t receive an affirmative vote, the nominations may be submitted from the floor including one by the gubernatorial candidate and a vote will be taken. At this point, the convention candidate receiving a majority of the total votes shall be declared elected by the convention.
So in order to get another nominee that is not Hernandez, you would have to pull off a coup. You would have to organize a resistance – get a Facebook resistance group going (I have found nothing) or call people and get something going.
The only one who appears to be calling delegates at this point is GOP strategist John Yob.
A person whose Twitter feed during the primary showed that he was anti-Dixon and pro-Rinke.
A person who has called Dixon a “broken nominee.”
A person who has been accused by Adam de Angeli of Rescue Michigan [1] as being the one behind the convention coup.
De Angeli said in his video, “I’ve received many reports that John Yob is advocating for the convention coup” and he continued to say that maybe Yob had some sour grapes about not having a horse to ride in the governor’s race with the loss of the other candidates that he backed. Yob had been a campaign consultant for both James Craig and Perry Johnson – both of whom ended up getting disqualified because of forged nomination signatures.
Yob himself appears to be quite establishment most of the time and is the go-to guy whenever the Detroit News needs a quote from someone in Republican party politics. He’s quite RINO-esque on some of the people he’s worked with including Rick Snyder and John McCain but he’s also happy to pick up a paycheck from people like Rand Paul.
Perhaps the biggest reason to think that Yob is behind the potential coup is that he might be the only one who can (and has) pulled it off. Yob’s business website for Strategic National says that he had a record of being 63-1 from 1998 to 2016 at contested Michigan State Conventions to help elect the likes of people such as Terri Lynn Land, Mike Cox, Brian Calley, Bill Schuette and others.
AND here’s a really big clue, folks. He wrote a book called “Chaos: The Outsiders Guide to a Contested Republican National Convention.”
The quotes about how great he is on his website come from leftist organizations like CNN “John is like this Unicorn, this mythical man” and MSNBC who calls him a “dark political arts operative… sorcerer” and a “delegate-math master operative.”
Yob also recently did a poll with his own company and said, “SN (Strategic National [2]) polled convention delegates over the weekend. We found that 54% would vote down Shane Hernandez on the 1st ballot, opening up nomination for others. Ballot between Soldano, Hernandez and Rebandt: Soldano 33%, Hernandez 23%, Rebandt 11%.”
So yes, he’s calling delegates.
And he seems to be okay going with whichever way the wind blows as long as it’s anti-Dixon.
He started out with Craig and Johnson. Then he was behind Rinke.
Then he supported numerous people to challenge the Lt. Gov. position.
Yob tweeted, “Soldano running is truly the establishment’s worse nightmare and the best case scenario for grassroots conservatives who stormed the county conventions.”
He also called Kelley “difficult to defeat at the convention” and then he said Dixon should pick Jase Bolger.
And now he’s stuck with Ralph Rebandt, the only candidate silly enough to agree to participate in the coup. The fifth place finisher. The pastor. The one man who should know better and not try to break apart the Michigan Republican Party and help tank the November election for his own glory.
The fact that all of these men are fighting against Dixon’s pick and not unifying behind her and the conservative voters of Michigan is beyond ridiculous. Sour grapes by a bunch of male losers who want to show that they still have some control.
And let me tell you… it won’t be a good look if Republicans boot off who could possibly be the first Hispanic Lt. Gov of Michigan. Not to mention someone who is as conservative as he is. One of the most conservative members of the State House and MIRS News awarded “Most Conservative Lawmaker.”
So…after Kelley and Soldano “turned down” the Lt. Gov. position, we thought that was the end of the NeverDixon crowd. But then came Rebandt.
Rebandt? Seriously? They’re going to turn down a proven conservative for Pastor Rebandt? The fifth place finisher who has no proven track record getting anything done in conservative politics?
It appears all of these sour grapes men (who were disgusting to Dixon in the primary by the way) are not just never-Dixons, they are never-anyone-Dixon likes as well. And they will sabotage the governors race if they have to in order to show that the men are in control.
It’s gotten so bad with all of the jilted Republican men that Trump had to come in and make a statement about the whole thing. Trump is the adult in the room standing up for a woman’s choice.
Trump said in a statement after Rebandt decided to “run” for Lt. Gov., “Tudor Dixon MUST defeat Gretchen Whitmer in November! I have talked to Tudor about the race and her choice of a running mate, Shane Hernandez. Since then, I have checked and found him to be an outstanding person. In fact, he was named Michigan’s most Conservative legislator, and is strongly committed to Election Integrity. The MAGA movement should support the ticket! This is who Tudor wants and therefore, Shane is who I want as your next Lieutenant Governor.”
He went on to say, “All Republicans must unite and work hard for Tudor and Shane.”
Rebandt tried to explain his newfound interest in being Lt. Gov by saying, ”The process of delegate nomination for lieutenant governor is a legitimate process allowed by Michigan election law and the Republican Party bylaws and should not be viewed as divisive.”
He also said, “In my 35 years of parliamentary experience, I have learned that when everyone has a voice in the process, there is greater unity and acceptance in the outcome. It is the will of many of the citizens of Michigan to offer their legitimate voice and by procedure, elect a lieutenant governor who will work with Tudor Dixon to protect the rights and interests of all the citizens of Michigan by exemplifying truth, respect, dignity and love.”
Yeah, right, Rebandt. Nice try.
I suppose it’s also not divisive that Kelley hasn’t conceded the race yet or endorsed Dixon. Or that James Craig came out the other day to say he will support the U.S. Taxpayers Party candidate Donna Brandenburg over Dixon.
But who is really behind the potential coup at the end of the day? It almost appears that it might be a combination of factions – the pissed off and disaffected, some of the grassroots and parts of the establishment – all combined to help Whitmer win re-election.
GREAT JOB, GUYS!