DETROIT – Michigan State Senator Jim Runestad of White Lake Township won the Michigan Republican Party chairmanship last Saturday, defeating Meshawn Maddock, the candidate endorsed by President Trump, at the party’s state convention held at Huntington Place in downtown Detroit.

The conservative lawmaker from Oakland County pledged to unite a party that has been deeply divided in recent years between its establishment wing and the grassroots movement. He emphasized that he had remained neutral between the two factions throughout his nearly decade-long legislative career.

Runestad secured 63 percent of the vote in the final round of voting, winning the support of approximately 2,000 Republican delegates from across the state. Maddock, who previously co-chaired the Michigan GOP with Ron Weiser from 2021 to 2023, received 37 percent of the vote.

The 65-year-old senator will replace outgoing party chair Pete Hoekstra, whom Trump appointed U.S. ambassador to Canada.

Runestad’s decisive victory

Runestad’s decisive victory came amid growing concerns among party delegates over Maddock’s ability to fundraise effectively for the GOP. Meanwhile, Runestad highlighted his strong fundraising capabilities, pledging to spend party funds efficiently and support competitive candidates for Michigan’s 2026 elections.

The 2026 election cycle in Michigan will be crucial, featuring races for:

• Governor
• Attorney General
• Secretary of State
• All 110 Michigan House seats
• All 38 Michigan Senate seats
• All 13 of Michigan’s congressional districts
• One of Michigan’s U.S. Senate seats

“Over my 10 years in the Michigan legislature, I have consistently been ranked as one of the most conservative lawmakers — if not the most conservative — every single year,” Runestad stated in a video message played at the convention.

He emphasized that he had never compromised his conservative principles for special interest groups.

After his victory, Runestad told reporters that he had deliberately avoided taking sides in past GOP disputes, promising to serve as a neutral mediator who would foster dialogue within the party.

“I have spent my entire life bringing people into a room and asking them, ‘What’s the issue?’” he said. “More often than not, they end up finding common ground.”

Runestad vs. Maddock: A contrast in styles

Runestad, who also runs his own insurance business, served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2015 to 2018 before being elected to the Michigan Senate in 2019. Unlike Maddock, he has largely avoided the party’s internal feuds.

Maddock, on the other hand, has been one of Trump’s most vocal allies in Michigan for the past decade. She is a staunch critic of the party’s traditional establishment wing, which is largely backed by major Republican donors.

Ron Weiser selected Maddock as his co-chair in 2021 in an effort to appeal to grassroots conservatives.

During her speech at the convention, Maddock launched a scathing attack on Governor Whitmer, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson — all Democrats,  calling them “the three witches.” She urged delegates to elect her, arguing that “Trump is always right.”

A victory without offending Trump

Despite Maddock’s Trump endorsement, Runestad and his campaign avoided framing his victory as a defeat for the president. Instead, he reminded delegates that he had also been an early supporter of Trump.

A two-round election process

Unlike the Michigan Democratic Party convention, which took place at the Renaissance Center just hundreds of meters away, where Curtis Hertel was elected party chair unopposed, the Michigan GOP race required two rounds of voting to determine a winner.

The three Republican candidates were:

• Jim Runestad
• Meshaun Maddock
• Joseph Cella, a former U.S. ambassador to Fiji during Trump’s first term

Under Michigan Republican Party rules, a candidate must receive more than 50 percent of the vote in the first round to win outright.

In the first round, the results were:

• Runestad: 46 percent
• Maddock: 31 percent
• Cella: 23 percent

Since no candidate received more than 50 percent, Cella was eliminated and his endorsement helped Runestad secure victory in the final round.

Even many Maddock supporters acknowledged that she might struggle to fundraise for the party. In response to her defeat, Maddock pledged to support party unity and work toward GOP victories in 2026.

The path to 2026: A changing political landscape

Following major Republican victories in Michigan during the 2024 elections, including Trump’s White House win and the GOP reclaiming control of the Michigan House of Representatives, Runestad vowed to lead the party to further success in 2026.

The 2026 elections will reshape Michigan’s political power for the following four years, influencing:

• State government leadership
• Legislative majorities
• Judicial appointments
• Congressional balance of power

According to Michigan Public Radio, both Republicans and Democrats recognize that the party capable of building the broadest coalition will likely win in 2026.

GOP gains with minority and ethnic voters

In the 2024 election, Michigan Republicans expanded their voter base, particularly among:

• Arab Americans
• Black voters in the Detroit area

To maintain this momentum, Runestad selected Bernadette Smith as his vice chair.

Smith played a key role in strengthening GOP outreach to minority communities during the 2024 elections as the Republican Party’s former vice chair for ethnic engagement under Pete Hoekstra.

“Beyond simply meeting people where they are, the party must move past racial and ethnic divisions,” Smith told NPR. “It’s all about communication. If we don’t reach out, they may never hear our message. But when we do, we realize that there’s no real difference between us.”