Sakwa has said there a “ton of Republicans” backing Duggan
LANSING — On Sunday, MAGA-funded Mike Duggan will once again grovel for the support of Republican donors, this time attending a fundraiser hosted by former Michigan Republican Party co-chair Jeff Sakwa.
Sakwa, who served as the co-chair of the MIGOP alongside Donald Trump’s eventual RNC Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel, previously wrote that there are a “ton of Republicans” backing Duggan and said that he wants “Republicans to win the House and the Senate” alongside Duggan.
In October, Duggan attended a fundraiser hosted by Trump megadonor Anthony Soave, who gave $100,000 to the Trump Victory PAC in 2020 and is involved in a city towing scandal with Duggan. The Michigan Democratic Party has also launched “MAGA Money ♥️’s Mike Duggan” billboards across Detroit as voters learn about Duggan’s true backing.
“It’s a day ending in Y, which means Mike Duggan is groveling for the support of MAGA donors as Donald Trump continues to hurt Michiganders,” said Michigan Democratic Party spokesperson Derrick Honeyman. “Duggan loves MAGA money, and he’s even defended Donald Trump’s cuts to Medicaid and said that as Mayor, he had no problems with the Trump administration. While he cozies up to Jeff Sakwa and Republicans who want to drive Michigan backwards, it’s clear that Mike Duggan can’t be trusted to stand up for families across the state who are struggling to make ends meet.”
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ON DUGGAN’S REPUBLICAN BACKING:
- A Metro Times analysis of Duggan’s fundraising showed that a “sizable share comes from donors of President Donald Trump, GOP party leaders, and conservative power brokers with vested interests in state policy.” Some of the major GOP donors who are funding Duggan’s campaign include:
- Ron Weiser, the former Chair of the Michigan Republican Party from 2017–2019 and 2021–2023. Weiser is a major Trump ally and played a prominent fundraising role in each of Trump’s campaigns. Weiser’s son and daughter-in-law also each donated $8,325 to Duggan. Weiser also played a pivotal role in passing anti-worker Right to Work laws in Michigan.
- Multimillionaire charter school profiteer and major GOP donor JC Huizenga, who led the effort to legalize charter schools in Michigan.
- Peter and Danialle Karmanos, who contributed $125,000 to Trump’s Victory Fund and nearly $200,000 to the Michigan Republican Party.
- $8,300 from Peter and Danialle Karmanos, who have contributed $125,000 to Trump’s Victory Fund and nearly $200,000 to the Michigan Republican Party.
- Several max-out donations from the Nicholson family, who are prominent Republican donors and gave more than $230,000 to Michigan House Republicans.
- $5,500 donation from Rich Baird, a Snyder Administration official who was criminally charged for his role in the Flint Water crisis
- $5,000 donation from David Schostak, a major GOP donor and brother of former MIGOP Chair Bobby Schostak.
- $1,000 donation from Nick Khouri, the Republican State Treasurer under Rick Snyder.
- Since launching his campaign, Duggan has “dramatically changed his rhetoric, turning his ire on Democrats and taking big donations from GOP party leaders, megadonors of Trump, and conservative power brokers with vested interests in state policy.”
- Reporting from Heartland Signal revealed that “over $200,000 of Duggan’s donations came from donors who also contributed to one or more of the Republican candidates in the race.”
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