Benson declines to rule on constitutionality of Michigan endorsement conventions, concerns persist

Election lawyers from both sides of the political spectrum said Monday that Michigan Secretary of Jocelyn Benson correctly declined to issue a declarative ruling on whether the major party’s endorsement conventions were constitutional.

However, the attorneys, in interviews with Michigan Advance, were split on whether the initial concerns of potential special-interest meddling in party decisions at those conventions – engaging in so-called bribery of delegates in the worst case scenario or pushing issue advocacy influence campaigns as a lesser evil – held water.

Benson issued a non-binding interpretative statement late last week in response to a request for a binding declarative ruling issued by Dennis Lennox, a longtime Republican communications consultant. Lennox asked Benson to rule on whether the Michigan Republican Party’s use of endorsement conventions early in an election year was constitutional, considering the party officially nominates candidates in a post-August primary nomination convention in the summertime.

Lennox also asked if delegates at the conventions were considered officials who are required to file financial disclosures and campaign statements, and if parties can require the earlier endorsement of the party as a prerequisite to attaining the nomination at the later summer conventions prior to the November election.



https://michiganadvance.com/2025/12/22/benson-declines-to-rule-on-constitutionality-of-michigan-endorsement-conventions-concerns-persist/