Tudor Dixon, the Republican gubernatorial candidate who failed to unseat Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, is hitting back at the state’s GOP following an internal memo that blamed her for the loss.
The report, which was shared by Dixon, cited her low name recognition, poor campaign finances, and lack of statewide operations.
"Following the August primary election, Tudor Dixon advanced as the gubernatorial nominee but was relatively unknown with low name ID and was an untested candidate," the memo said.
"Dixon’s campaign had no money, no statewide operations, and was attempting to transition from three weeks of working for and receiving an endorsement from Donald Trump, into a general election audience with a more unfavorable opinion of the former President Trump than of President Joe Biden," it continued. "Historically, our Republican gubernatorial nominees have raised several millions of dollars and built out teams during the primary, with preparations to expand an already strong operation as soon as they advance on to the general. Unfortunately, Dixon did not have that luxury.
"With almost no cash on hand and hard work to be done to gain the trust of the Party’s grassroots, Dixon had to start from scratch while Gretchen Whitmer and allies were sitting on tens of millions of dollars, of which they immediately deployed, blasting Dixon on statewide TV, digital, and radio throughout, early and often," it concluded.
On Twitter, Dixon said the assessment is what's "wrong with the [Michigan GOP].
"It’s an issue of leadership - Ron Weiser, Meshawn Maddock, and Paul Cordes all refuse to take ownership for their own failures," she said.
"It’s easy to come out and point fingers now, but the truth is they fought against me every step of the way and put the entire ticket at risk," Dixon continued. "We need fresh leadership at the [Michigan GOP] or Republicans will never have a voice in Michigan again."
"Our state party failed on Let MI Kids Learn and Secure MI Vote," Dixon added. "Because of their failure, we now have Prop 2. We have to do better than this current incompetent leadership."
It’s easy to come out and point fingers now, but the truth is they fought against me every step of the way and put the entire ticket at risk. We need fresh leadership at the @MIGOP or Republicans will never have a voice in Michigan again.
— Tudor Dixon (@TudorDixon) November 10, 2022
Our state party failed on Let MI Kids Learn and Secure MI Vote. Because of their failure, we now have Prop 2. We have to do better than this current incompetent leadership.
— Tudor Dixon (@TudorDixon) November 10, 2022
Michigan GOP chief of staff Paul Cordes fired back.
"We did nothing but stand with her, so that’s a clear lie. We turned out more Republicans than in previous midterm elections," he told Fox News Digital. "I’m struggling to find what parts of the memo, based on data from this past Tuesday, she’s struggling with."
Dixon said she's considering running for state party chair and will announce her plans soon.
“We must have a unified party that focuses on winning votes and elections,” she said in a statement. “In the post-Covid, Prop 2 era, our party must be competitive and it has not been for a variety of reasons. I believe in a bright future for Michigan where we forge a path to win Republican majorities again through family-friendly policies.”
— Tudor Dixon (@TudorDixon) November 12, 2022