Detroit Today: Why some Republicans believe they can flip Michigan in 2024

The 2024 presidential race kicked off in earnest in Michigan as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump spoke as part of the Oakland County Republican Party’s Lincoln Day fundraiser on Sunday night. It marked the candidate’s first appearance in Michigan since announcing his bid to run again, despite the criminal charges and multiple investigation ongoing against him.

The timing of the appearance may signal how important many Republicans view the state locally and nationally. Conservatives hope they can flip Senator Debbie Stabenow’s seat now that she will not be seeking reelection.

Party operatives also announced this month that former Governor Rick Snyder is taking an active role in fundraising for the Republican effort to win back the Michigan House.

Listen: How Republicans think they can have greater success in Michigan in 2024.

Guests

Dennis Darnoi is a political consultant who tracks voter data. He says Michigan will play an important role in the upcoming presidential election.

“Michigan is going to play a major role in deciding the next president,” says Darnoi. “Donald Trump sees very, very fertile ground here for his campaign and his ability to win the state in the upcoming presidential.”

Bill Nowling is a longtime political communications strategist in Detroit who worked for Rick Snyder’s first campaign for governor. He has also assisted the Michigan House Republicans, the state Republican Party, and state Senate Republicans.

Nowling says Republican support of candidates unwilling to compromise on their conservative agenda puts winnable seats at risk.

“To me that is a much more scarier proposition than whether or not Republicans can win the state is,” says Nowling. “Can we find candidates that can run that are that are sane and responsible conservatives who have conservative principles, but are not going to put the advancement of the state at risk just because somebody’s proposal goes against my conservative principles?

Ethan Baker is the mayor of Troy. In 2018, he ran as a Republican in the Michigan State House. He says many Republicans in Oakland County disagree with Donald Trump’s personality, but supported the policies Donald Trump enacted as president.

“I think, from the Republican standpoint, there’s a lot of Republicans who are, you know, pretty far to the right and even in the middle who really support a lot of the policies that happened under the Trump administration,” says Baker.

Jeff Payne is the managing editor at the Macomb Daily. He says Republicans in Macomb County are eying Nate Shannon’s (D-Sterling Heights) seat as a key chance to flip the state house.

“He’s term limited,” says Payne “And he’s done very well, for three cycles there. I would think that one’s going to be in play for the Republicans.”

Cody Dill is a member of city council for Gibraltar, a city which is part of the Downriver area. He believes Republicans should focus on local issues like infrastructure and stop catering to national politics.

“Infrastructure definitely shouldn’t be number one,” says Dill.  “They should negotiate [on infrastructure] and try to move away from national politics, if you will, and more localize the election.”