Turmoil continues within the Michigan Republican Party
LANSING, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Two official websites and two people claiming to be the leader of their organization.
That's the situation the Michigan GOP currently finds itself in.
One website lists Kristina Karamo as the current chair, and another website lists Malinda Pego of Muskegon as the acting chair of the organization.
Before this week, Pego served as co-chair of the Michigan GOP.
How did the organization charged with fundraising and supporting Republican candidates get to this point?
Members of the state Republican party gathered over the weekend to vote on ousting the group's controversial chairwoman. With about 88% of the vote, according to members who were in attendance, Karamo was removed from her position. But that's a vote and a meeting Karamo dismissed on Monday as illegitimate.
At issue were claims of financial mishandling by Karamo-- a bombshell report in late 2023 released by MIGOP member Warren Carpenter alleged the organization is currently in hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.
Late on Monday, Karamo claimed during a town hall listening session that she accepted Pego's resignation as co-chair. It's a claim that Pego quickly disputed in a statement, calling the claim "entirely false."
Pego went on to say, "Although some seek to divide, now is the time for our party to come together and work to elect Republicans across our great state. I believe the best is yet to come."
CBS News Detroit reached out to the Republican National Committee for comment but did not year back. Karamo is still listed as the state chairwoman for Michigan.
