Matt DePerno and his biggest fan (File photo)
With an approaching party endorsement convention shaping up to be a test of former President Trump's influence in Michigan, Trump was the star of a "telephone town hall" with supporters Wednesday. He used his time to again tout his preferred candidate for state attorney general, Matt DePerno of Kalamazoo.
Matt DePerno and his biggest fan (File photo)
Trump again pushed his oft-told lies about "election fraud," and vowed that elections will be different if DePerno defeats incumbent Dana Nessel in the fall.
"This choice is not just about 2022," Trump said of the attorney general race. "This is about ensuring the state of Michigan cannot be stolen from Republicans in 2024 or ever again.
"Matt will stop it. Tom (Leonard, who is running against DePerno) will not. He has not got the capability to stop it. And he had his chance, and he refused to do it. And people were shocked."
It's unclear what Trump was referencing when he said "people were shocked" or how Leonard had the chance to "stop it."
It's unclear because Leonard had no authority to intervene with the election. He was Nessel's opponent in 2018, lost by 3 percentage points, and was a private citizen in 2020.
The telephone town hall, where Trump spoke for about five minutes, was held in advance of Saturday's GOP endorsement convention in Grand Rapids. Party delegates will vote on who to endorse for the August primary. Rep. Ryan Berman, Commerce Township, is also running for the seat.
