Ottawa County conservative groups offer dueling endorsements ahead of Aug. 6 Republican primary • Michigan Advance

“The Republican Party is divided, but you will see their endorsement convention where Bill Huizenga got four votes and the party chairman got about 180 votes,” he said.

He also emphasized the rrecent recall election of IO Republican Lucy Ebel, who lost to Democrat Chris Kleinjans on May 7.

“Then you have Ebel, who lost the recall election for District Two, normally a district that is 55-45 Republican and 60-40 Democrat and they still came back and re-endorsed her? To me, that means they are not listening to voters. They only focus on their agenda, and only their agenda,” Van Koevering said.

Several local candidates seeking countywide office have denounced the GOP endorsement convention, saying they weren’t even interviewed before the vote.

Eric DeBoer is the current Ottawa County Undersheriff. He’s running for the top sheriff’s job this year and said it’s disappointing that the local party chose to interfere before the Aug. 6 primary.

“I am not invited to the Ottawa GOP nominating committee meeting. I never received a questionnaire nor was I interviewed by any member for verification,” he said. “Historically, the party has stayed out of primaries. It is up to primary voters to choose their candidate. Unfortunately, this no longer appears to be the goal of the Ottawa Republican Party. It’s more about consolidating power in the hands of a few.”

CO considered candidates “who uphold traditional Republican values, are demonstrably qualified leaders, demonstrate respect for their fellow citizens and leaders, are fiscally responsible and believe in limited government,” Van Koevering said.

CO sent each candidate a questionnaire regarding the issues facing the respective offices.

“The questionnaires along with the candidates’ CVs and endorsements were reviewed by the PAC during the selection process,” he said.

“The prosecutor’s approval will come at a later date as we work to develop questions relevant to this position,” Van Koevering said.

Van Koevering said he thought OI needed to be in control.

“They want to be able to dictate what happens in every aspect of county government,” he said. “They want to dictate which crimes will be prosecuted and which crimes will not, and which laws will be enforced and which laws will not be enforced because they think the government has become too big. »

Last summer, the OI-led board championed the idea of ​​Ottawa as a “constitutional county,” shortly after the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed reform legislation of firearms, often referred to as “scar laws”.

Before the board’s vote, Moss said he was “very pleased to fulfill this commitment that I made very publicly and have supported for a long time.”

The Ottawa Impact did not respond to a request for comment on this story.

Meanwhile, the anti-abortion group Right to Life of Michigan released its own set of endorsements, in which the group favored all OI incumbents and a handful of OC-backed candidates.

Right to Life of Michigan did not respond to a request for comment.

The group often wields great influence among conservative groups, but internal frustrations have emerged over the years.

Pete Hoekstra, current president of MIGOP, noted this when he ran for the 2010 Republican gubernatorial nomination, Right to Life of Michigan argued then-state Attorney General Mike Cox — although he previously supported Hoekstra while serving as a U.S. representative. Former Gov. Rick Snyder ended up winning the GOP primary and general election.

“I had a 100% pro-life voting record, and when I ran for governor, Right to Life supported a candidate and four out of five of us were clearly pro-life,” he said. -he declares.

Hoekstra, 70, said the importance of the endorsements varies.

“Support therefore depends totally on the credibility of the organization which provides it,” he declared.

Van Koevering said conservatives must overcome infighting because current divisions create opportunities for progressive candidates and groups.

“We really need to stop using the circular firing squad; we’re shooting ourselves,” he said. “And we have to realize that a lot of things that are happening are because we are killing each other instead of focusing on running campaigns and electing good people.” They no longer called us the RHINOs, but now the Democrats.”

Hoekstra agreed that Republicans need to end the infighting and get to work winning elections.

“We don’t want the press to talk about the internal conflicts of the last four or five months,” he said. “We need to focus on November.”