Today, MDP is calling on the GOP gubernatorial primary field to commit to the same level of historic transparency as Governor Whitmer and commit to releasing their tax returns, personal financial disclosures, and information about which corporate boards they sit on. 

The candidates in the GOP primary field have run campaigns based on lies and conspiracy theories, attempting to paper over their records, and refusing to disclose financial information: 

• Soldano Has Relied On Outrageous Lies To Line His Pockets and Boost His Crusade to Spread Disinformation: At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020, he operated as the national marketing director of Juice Plus+, a product he claimed would “literally” turn consumers’ bodies “into an environment of greatness and you’ll dominate any virus.” His snake oil salesman-type false advertisements of the product were so aggressive it forced the company to “issue a statement backing away from the claim” two months later. He’s also been banned from social platforms multiple times for “spreading false vaccine information” as it relates to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
• James Craig Has Hidden from Reporters, Refused to Disclose Which Corporate Boards He Sits On, and Tried to Paper Over His Record: MIGOP-insider favorite James Craig spent months touting a statewide “listening tour” that ultimately “never materialized.” Then he purposefully invited “journalists to an event which they could physically see but not hear” him as he sat in a glass room “to discuss items still not entirely known to this day.” He also lied about fleeing a 2013 carjacking in progress, and most damningly has refused repeated calls to disclose both clients on his paid speaking schedule and companies that have brought him on to operate as a paid board member.
• Out-of-Touch Millionaire Kevin Rinke Refuses to Tell Michiganders Who Is Paying Him Behind Closed Doors: Out-of-touch, self-funding millionaire Kevin Rinke has so far not pledged to release his tax returns or personal financial information, and has also refused to acknowledge requests from The Detroit News to disclose which boards he gets paid to sit on.

• Tudor Dixon’s Campaign Peddles Lies by Design: Tudor Dixon will stoop to any low necessary to mislead Michigan voters into going along with her dangerous agenda. Just this week an advisor for her campaign admitted to spreading outright lies about Governor Gretchen Whitmer with attacks the Detroit Free Press had to dismiss as “a massive stretch, at best.” And like Soldano, she has never crossed a conspiracy theory too outlandish for her to adopt, using a rally appearance to make the “illogical claim that Whitmer supports rapists and cartels.”

MDP spokesperson Rodericka Applewhaite issued the following statement:

“Garrett Soldano, James Craig, Kevin Rinke, and Tudor Dixon have made clear being transparent with Michiganders isn’t a priority by running campaigns based on outright lies and repeatedly attempting to paper over their records. Governor Whitmer is the first governor in state history to voluntarily disclose tax returns and personal financial information. MDP is calling on the GOP primary candidates to release their tax returns, personal financial information, and corporate board seats because Michiganders deserve to see the same level of transparency.”

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