Michigan GOP expected to unite behind Donald Trump

A Michigan GOP convention in Grand Rapids on Saturday will allocate 39 of the state’s 55 GOP presidential delegates, but a significant portion of the party’s grassroots force won’t be attending due to the lingering aftereffects of a months-long dispute over who is leading the party.

Still amid the division, chaos and legal disputes, the party is expected to unite behind one candidate Saturday: former President Donald Trump.

Trump won Michigan’s Feb. 27 Republican primary handily, receiving 68% of the vote compared to rival Nikki Haley’s 27%.

The win gave a clear indication of Trump’s standing in Michigan ahead of November, but a majority of Michigan’s GOP delegates will be awarded Saturday.

Michigan Republicans were forced to split their primary into two parts after Democrats who control the state government moved Michigan into the early primary states, violating the national Republican party’s rules.

Trump, who has won every presidential contest in which he’s appeared on the ballot and earned 122 delegates, is expected to lock up the party’s nomination soon after Super Tuesday.

Saturday’s convention comes just days after a Kent County judge affirmed that former Michigan GOP Chair Kristina Karamo was removed properly by party members in January. The decision officially hands the state party over to former Rep. Pete Hoekstra, whom the Republican National Committee recognized last month.

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Published with permission of the Associated Press.