Mediaboss Marketing

Feelers indicate that Amazon may now be ready to explore what the continent has to offer on the e-commerce front but the nous and experience of indigenous giants such as Konga will come in handy if it is not to stumble heavily in Africas biggest market

It is no longer news that global e-commerce giant, Amazon is all but set to extend its tentacles to Africa.

Earlier this month, a South African court ordered a halt on the construction of Amazons new African headquarters, a massive 70,000 square metres (17.3 acres) structure. The ruling came after some descendants of the countrys earliest inhabitants said the land it would be built on was sacred.

As reported by Reuters, the Western Cape division of the High Court interdicted the project developer from continuing with works at the Cape Town site until there had been meaningful engagement and consultation with affected indigenous peoples. Among these are the Khoi and the San, two of the earliest inhabitants of South Africa, some of whose descendants had objected to the River Club development, arguing that it lies at the confluence of two rivers considered sacred, the Black and Liesbeek Rivers.

It is important to state, at this juncture, that Amazon has retained a presence in Africa for years. The e-commerce giant has several employees on its payroll working in data hubs located across Cape Town. Notably, the origin of Amazons current expansion into Africa began in 2004 when it set up a development centre in Cape Town. Incidentally, that centre eventually went on to build Amazons first cloud platform, known as the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud which heralded its hugely successful cloud computing arm Amazon Web Services (AWS). Today, AWS is responsible for the lion share of Amazons global operating income.

The firms adventure in Africa is thus intrinsically tied to its long-standing relationship with the South African city of Cape Town, the oldest and second largest city in that country after Johannesburg. As reported by fDi Intelligence, Amazon, in 2000, had gone ahead with plans to hire 3000 customer support staff in Cape Town. In addition, AWS, its cloud business, had plumped for Cape Town to host its first cloud region in Africa. Furthermore, nine of Amazons 19 projects in Africa are located in Cape Town, with five others in Johannesburg. The rest are split between Kenya, Morocco and Egypt.

The foregoing shows Amazon has established its cloud business in parts of the continent. But is it now ready to join the e-commerce race in Africa?

Although still a growing industry, the e-commerce space in Africa has begun to capture the attention and imagination of international investors. Research from Statista indicates that revenue generated via e-commerce in Africa was estimated to be around 27.97 billion U.S dollars in 2020, representing an increase of over $6bn since 2019. Correspondingly, e-commerce revenue in Africa is expected to keep up an upward curve, with estimates projecting the entire e-commerce sector in Africa to reach a value of over $46.1 billion by 2025.

Historically, Amazon is reputed to consider significant expansion into a region only when it becomes commercially viable for its line of business. But despite the fact that the promise of Africa still lies within the realms of potential rather than actuality, e-commerce watchers and analysts are of the view that a budding $46bn market in the next three years or thereabouts is more than enough justification for Amazon to throw its hat into the e-commerce ring.

Stanley Ugboaja, a Ph.D. student and e-commerce enthusiast, captures the prevailing mindset succinctly.

Africas population dynamics naturally makes it a frontier for e-commerce to explode in the next few years. The continent is home to the worlds youngest and second-largest population. Digital literacy and numeracy is also on the rise here, same as internet penetration. Many young Africans are gaining useful exposure, either from flocking abroad for further studies or even from working remotely here for foreign firms or multinationals. When you throw in the rise in the number of fintech platforms further expanding the net of the unbanked and under-banked on the continent, you can see that the trends all tilt towards favourable conditions for e-commerce or online shopping to grow.

So far, on the e-commerce front, Amazon is only present in a solitary African country. That country is Egypt where Souq, an Amazon subsidiary acquired in 2017 for $580m, operates. Souq, initially founded in Dubai, UAE in 2005, was the largest e-commerce platform in the Arab world. With the acquisition by Amazon, the Egyptian site turned into Amazon.eg on September 1, 2021, officially marking the end of Souq.com.

But if, as anticipated, Amazons African adventure will now accommodate playing in the continents major e-commerce markets, Nigeria will be uppermost in its reckoning.

In addition to being Africas most populous nation, Nigeria remains the leading African economy in terms of nominal GDP in 2021, making up 18.4 per cent of the continents $2.7 trillion economy. According to the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), Nigerias GDP, which measures how much a country produces in financial terms within a year, grew by 11.89 per cent from 2020 to 2021. Likewise, data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) revealed that Nigerias GDP went from $429.423 billion in 2020 to $480.482 billion in 2021, making the country the highest contributor to Africas economic output/ GDP and the 29th in the world.

However, cutting it in Nigeria, Africas biggest market, will test the might and resilience of Amazon.

Currently dominated by Konga and Jumia, the Nigerian e-commerce market is a challenging ecosystem that has signaled the death knell of many promising players. Although Amazon especially considering its roaring success in other advanced markets cannot be placed in the same bracket as some of the startups that have quietly exited the market after finding the Nigerian e-commerce space a mountain too hard to climb, it is fitting to call to mind the instructive words of a globally renowned tech leader and Africa Chair for IEEE World Internet of Things (WIoT), Chris Uwaje.

Uwaje, who is widely hailed as the Oracle of the Nigerian IT Industry, had pinpointed the challenge in cracking the Nigerian e-commerce market as one that lies heavily in the approach or business strategy adopted by most players, many of whom fail to situate foreign business models, ideas and strategies within the culture of the people and Nigerias existential realities.

Nigeria remains a fertile business environment, especially for online-focused ventures such as e-commerce companies. It is also a country with peculiar challenges and a very strong traditional approach to retail which requires a deep sense of local know-how and understanding by players. This is one of the biggest hurdles faced by e-commerce start-ups here. Many e-commerce ventures run with foreign concepts and strategies more suited to foreign climes, making it harder for them to survive the difficult terrain that is the Nigerian business space.

But beyond the foregoing, the challenge of making a success out of e-commerce in Nigeria is one that is fraught with huge infrastructural and institutional bottlenecks.

The combination of a frustratingly underdeveloped public transport infrastructure network, absence of a proper addressing system across cities, the still-largely traditional shopping predilection of the average Nigerian and the mega-hurdle of logistics, among others, are not issues that having deep pockets alone or a popular name will solve. During the height of the COVID-19 enforced lockdown, the activities of overzealous state actors saw delivery vans conveying essential items to Nigerians delayed needlessly for days on end, or even sent back in some cases a debacle which almost eroded the gains that accrued from the increased dependence by many Nigerians on e-commerce for safe, contactless shipping during the pandemic and which epitomised the sheer scale of some of the institutional obstacles e-commerce companies may encounter in Nigeria.

Konga, acquired by the Zinox Group from erstwhile majority owners, Naspers and AB Kinnevik, and which has become the first e-commerce company to hit profitability on the continent, may represent a fitting playbook for Amazon to study.

Considering its technology-driven status (a factor that would resonate with Amazon); a revolutionary composite fusion of online and offline which it pioneered and subsequently adopted by other players (including Amazon); the way and manner it has resolved the thorny obstacle of logistics; its massive physical assets strategically located across Nigeria (warehousing, delivery, nationwide physical stores/pick-up locations); penchant for customer service and the confidence it enjoys in the minds of shoppers, among others, Konga stands apart. However, it is in the magic of how it found a way to break the cycle of unprofitability which continues to dog other e-commerce players in Nigeria and Africa transitioning from a business that once posted monthly losses of over N400m to emerging the first profitable African e-commerce venture that Amazon would most admire Konga.

Most importantly, under its new owners, the current management of Konga boasts that keen understanding of successfully navigating the difficult terrain that Africas biggest market represents. It is a strength which has come to weigh heavily in its advantage, making the Konga template arguably the one to beat. Backed by entrepreneurs with over three decades of consistent success in the Sub-Saharan African technology space, Konga has not only thrived where others have failed or are struggling, but the business is now set, as feelers indicate, for a run across other African markets and a much-anticipated listing on major global exchanges, with a glut of external investors waiting.

Succeeding in the continents biggest market, even for a big name like Amazon, may mean seriously considering a partnership with Konga or at least, borrowing a leaf from its strategies.

Amazon would also have to decide if some of the unethical practices it has been accused of would unearth more dire consequences if they were exported to Africa. The e-commerce giant was recently accused of anti-competitive behavior by preventing third-party sellers from offering lower prices for their products on other platforms, including their own websites. The foregoing formed the crux of an antitrust lawsuit filed against Amazon by District of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine, which was thrown out in court last Friday, according to a report by The New York Times. However, the suit was thrown out partly because Amazon faces a nearly identical lawsuit, in this case, a class action complaint that claims the company pressures sellers into selling products for an equal or lower price than what they offer elsewhere.

Also staring it in the face are allegations of tax avoidance which may land the e-commerce behemoth in hot waters here in Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa. Research reveals that Amazons tax behaviours have been investigated in China, Germany, Poland, South Korea, France, Japan, Ireland, Singapore, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, multiple states in the United States, and Portugal. According to a report released by Fair Tax Mark in 2019, Amazon is the best actor of tax avoidance, having paid a 12% effective tax rate between 2010-2018, in contrast with 35% corporate tax rate in the US during the same period. Amazon countered that it had an 24% effective tax rate during the same period.

Africas budding e-commerce lustre may represent an allure too difficult for Amazon to ignore. Nevertheless, it would discover that this ecosystem will tax its wits, determination, and sheer ability to adapt to their very limits.

But in Konga, Amazon can learn from a proven success story.

Tarila Ben-White (Ph.D.), an e-commerce researcher, writes from Bayelsa.

Related

Originally posted here:
Amazon will discover e-Commerce in Africa not a tea party - Nairametrics

At candidate forums and on social media, debates over highly politicized issues, such as masking and how race, history and LGBTQ issues are taught in schools, have dominated some local school board races.

When St. Louis County voters go to the polls on April 5, they will be voting in more contested school board races than in the previous decade, and in some districts, wedge issues have become the focus. Though a number of candidates have said that politics has no place in school board races, groups from both sides of the political divide are creating guides with lists of candidates that align with their viewpoints.

Political debates in education often come in waves, but this is a particularly heated time, said Vladimir Kogan, an associate professor of political science at the Ohio State University.

Whenever educational issues become salient at the national level, the dynamics play out in local elections, because that's what people pay attention to, Kogan said.

Missouri lawmakers have also filed bills that would change the way school board elections are held, by moving them to November or having candidates declare a party. The Missouri School Boards Association has denounced the bills, saying they could make things even more political.

We're very much opposed to that legislation, said Brent Ghan, deputy executive director for the association. We feel that it would create a more partisan atmosphere for school board elections should they be on a November ballot with a lot of other partisan races.

Partisan issues

At a forum in the Rockwood School District in early March, the candidates were divided on issues including health policies and how schools discuss race, history and LGBTQ issues. The room was also physically divided.

But in interviews after the event, most of the candidates said they think the politicization of education has gone too far.

Kayla Drake

/

St. Louis Public Radio

I think it's way too political, and we have to figure out how to put something in place to make sure that that's minimal, said Jessica Clark, a candidate for Rockwoods school board whose yard signs include the words Vote Conservative under her name.

Because school boards are elected, they are inherently political, but Ghan said its an issue when boards become mired in partisanship.

We're seeing politics involved in school board races more frequently than we used to, and that's of some concern to us, Ghan said. Sometimes we have groups outside the communities we're seeing that more frequently now that are getting involved in local school board races.

In Missouri, some statewide organizations have been creating lists of candidates that align with their views and sharing them on social media. The Missouri Equity Education Partnership, a grassroots organization that advocates for anti-bias, anti-racist education and has a school board candidate guide. Andy Wells, the Missouri chapter president of No Left Turn in Education, has also shared candidate guides on social media. The national grassroots group advocates against Critical Race Theory, a term that conservatives have applied to a broad range of curricula relating to race and diversity.

The focus on political wedge issues is part of a national effort to win voters in the suburbs, where education issues are particularly salient, said Kogan. Politicians at the national level have also stoked these debates, using rhetoric that inflames already-tense school board races.

President Trump was very divisive in particular, and he had strong opinions on all these issues, Kogan said. I think you have this top-down elite leadership on educational issues, and when you don't have that, you don't see polarization.

National Republican leaders have also spoken openly about this strategy. Steve Bannon, a former adviser to Trump, told Politico the focus on school boards and the fight against critical race theory is, the Tea Party to the 10th power.

But all of this has happened before, Kogan said. In the 1980s, politics was focused on prayer in school. By the early 2000s, the debate had shifted to intelligent design, or how evolution is taught in schools.

I think if you go back really the last 40 years or so, you can find a lot of examples of similar dynamics of whatever the hot issue of the day was, Kogan said.

Election change

In the Missouri legislature, Republicans lawmakers have sponsored bills to move school board elections to November and have candidates declare a party.

The Missouri School Boards Association has voiced its opposition to the proposals, arguing they could deepen the partisan divide over education and make school board elections more political and more expensive.

A November general election ballot is very lengthy; school board races would likely be way down on those ballots and would probably get a lot less attention, Brent Ghan said. They would probably have to raise a lot more money for those campaigns.

Kate Grumke

/

St. Louis Public Radio

But some political experts have a different view. Moving the elections to November could increase turnout in the typically low-turnout municipal elections, said Kogan. In St. Louis County last year, about 15% of registered voters weighed in on the election.

Kogan said the current low turnout means special interest groups like teachers unions have greater sway than they would in a higher-turnout election. I think a lot of the opposition to on-cycle elections is really based on that idea, because school interests enjoy a lot of power and don't want to give it up, he said.

Another issue with the way these elections are held is that the April electorate is an older group of voters that doesnt necessarily have kids, Kogan said.

I don't think there's a way to easily change rules to make it less about adults and more about kids because kids don't vote, Kogan said. What you're really talking about is a bunch of adults with adult political agendas, fighting with a bunch of other adults, and they're all claiming that they're doing it for the kids.

Other issues

Despite deepening political divides in some races, not every school district in the St. Louis area is focusing on partisan battles during this years elections. The Normandy Schools Collaborative and Riverview Gardens are directly electing school board candidates for the first time in eight years and 12 years, respectively.

At a recent candidate forum in Normandy, the main topic of discussion was how to improve the districts academics in order to return to fully accredited status. Candidates repeatedly said this years elections are historic after years of state control.

Its those types of issues that make these elections so important, Ghan said.

The decisions that school boards make have more of an impact on our communities and on people's lives and our children's lives than almost any other level of government, he said. People need to pay close attention to school board races and the folks who are running for local school boards.

Follow Kate on Twitter: @Kate Grumke

Read the original post:
St. Louis school board races are more political this year - St. Louis Public Radio

SARAH Palin gained international renown for her Republican fervor and her controversial views as well as her offspring.

Get to know who Palin is and what has she been up to since she went for the vice presidency.

2

Sarah Palin is a high-profile Republican Party politician, author and commentator.

The outspoken 58-year-old served as the ninth governor of Alaska from 2006 until 2009.

She gained international prominence as the vice-presidential nominee on the Republican Party ticket in 2008.

The conservative politician teamed up with Arizona Senator John McCain but eventually lost to Barack Obama.

She was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major political party and the first Republican woman selected as the vice presidential candidate.

The mother-of-five was also the youngest person ever to be elected Governor of Alaska.

Since quitting the role in 2009, Palin has continued to campaign for and endorse the Republican Party.

She is well-known in the Tea Party movement and has given her backing to a number of Republican candidatesincluding former President Donald Trump.

2

1982: Joined the Republican Party

1992: Elected onto Wasilla City Council

1996: Successfully ran as Mayor of Wasilla on the ticket of introducing abortion, gun rights, and term lengths as campaign issues

1997: Re-elected with a far greater majority

1999: Elected president of the Alaska Conference of Mayors

2002: Palin run for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor, coming second in a five-way primary

2003: Appointed to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission

2006: Palin became Alaska's first female governor and the youngest at 42

2007: The first time Palin traveled outside of North America. She visited members of the Alaskan National Guard

2008: Joined Senator McCain as the Republican vice-presidential nominee

2009: Reacting to a huge drop in support, Palin said she would not run for re-election

2009: Released her memoir, Going Rogue

2010: Published her second book, America by Heart

2011: Following speculation, Palin said she would not be running as a presidential candidate

2016: Announced her endorsement of Donald Trump

2017: Filed a defamation lawsuit (later dismissed) against The New York Times for an editorial that accused Palin of "political incitement" in the run-up to the 2011 shooting of Democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

April 2018:Palin says she would run for higher office again "in a heartbeat"

August 2021: Palin teases a return to politics in a potential Senate run in 2022

Sarah Palin has five children: Track, Bristol, Willow, Piper, and Trig.

Track is an army veteran and has two children from two different partners. Sarah Palin spoke about how he had suffered from PTSD.

Bristol Palin is a reality TV star and an American public speaker. She has three children and is married to Sergeant Dakota Meyer.

She gained media attention when her mother, Sarah Palin, mentioned her pregnancy as part of her vice-presidential campaign.

The following year, in May 2009, Palin appeared on both the Today show and Good Morning America in recognition of the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, calling for all teens to abstain from sex.

Her memoir, Not Afraid of Life: My Journey So Far reached #21 on the New York Times best-seller list.

Willow Meyer is a trained hairdresser and announced she is pregnant with a baby boy on November 7, 2021. The couple gave birth to a boy named, Pace Banner Bailey, in March 2022.

Willow and her husband Ricky Bailey welcomed twin girls Banks and Blaise in November 2019.

Piper is currently pursuing nursing school and Trig is in high school.

See more here:
Who is Sarah Palin and her children?... - The US Sun

Photo provided by Jim HoldingA monument erected to Dr. Joseph Warren at his grave site, the Forest Hills Cemetery in Jamaica Plain, Mass.

One thing that newspapers in years gone by would at times do is publish speeches in their entirety.

In a modern context, that results in some pretty boring column inches. But in 1910, there werent really any other avenues to hear what was said unless you were there without reading it in print.

Charles Warren Stone was the keynote speaker. He had served as lieutenant governor and Congressman but by 1910 was in his late 60s and retired, living in Warren.

The Warren Evening Mirror published the text of his address on July 6, 1910, two days after it was delivered.

Today the Tidioute Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution will unveil in the Borough of Warren a statue of Major General Joseph Warren, after whom the town and county were named, Stone began. This is intended not only to perpetuate the memory and virtues of the first prominent martyr in the great struggle which gave this government existence, but as a permanent memorial to the soldiers buried in Warren County who took part in that great conflict.

In addition to the statue of Warren, there is a plaque on the side that identifies all of the Revolutionary veterans buried in Warren County.

The statue was brought to reality by the Tidioute Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

The ladies, Stone said, to whose patriotism, energy and enterprise this community is indebted for the beautiful monument by them erected, have deemed it appropriate to this occasion to recall to your attention to salient points in the career and the prominent features in the character of the man whose statue is to be unveiled and to rehearse again the lesson of that noble life and tragic death, and have assigned to me that duty.

Conscious of my inability under any circumstances, and especially in the short time allowed me for preparation, to do justice to this subject and this occasion, I have however accepted this assignment that I may manifest as best I may my admiration for the character of the man we this day especially honor my life for the town which I have spent all the years of my mature life, and my appreciation of the patriotic, public service rendered to this town and county by the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Stone then went into a general biography of Warrens life, starting with his birth in 1741.

General Warrens immediate ancestry were distinctively of the common people. His father was a farmer, his grandfather a carpenter and his great-grandfather a mariner, he said. They were, however, men of intelligence, uprightness, high character and exemplary and useful citizens. His mother was a woman of exceptional force of character.

Warren went to Harvard at the age of 14 and was recognized as a young man of rectitude of purpose and conduct; of exemplary habits, of manly bearing, of personal courage and of generous independent disposition.

It is recorded of him that he was especially attentive to the poor, a stranger to avarice and indifferent and neglectful as to compensation for his services. Thoroughly versed in the learning of his profession, graceful and attractive in figure and beaming of elegant address and thorough culture, open, genial, cordial in manner, he had all the qualities which would have ensured him unrivaled success and eminence in his profession.

Stone devoted significant time to Warrens pre-Revolutionary agitation efforts.

While attending faithfully on the sick by day, Warren studied with assiduity the principles of government by night, and specially the right of Parliament to tax the colonies, he said, calling the response to taxed tea the first step toward united action essential to success. It roused the people from their sluggishness.

He said it is uncertain whether Warren was part of the Boston Tea Party. It was charged by the Tories but never either proved or denied. As an eminent historian has said: It is praise enough to say of Warren that he is seen constantly by the side of Samuel Adams through the whole of these interesting occurrences.'

He discussed the Suffolk Resolves and his Boston Massacre orations and then his role in dispatching Revere in advance of Lexington & Concord.

His character and conduct and presence greatly animated and encouraged his countrymen. His heroic soul elicited a kindred. His lofty spirit gave them confidence, Stone said.

He then told the story of Warrens death at Bunker Hill.

My friends, I have thus hurriedly, lest I trespass too much on your patience and inadequately I know referred to some of the more important events of Warrens life. If judging from these, I were to say he was one of the purest and greatest men America has produced, ranking well toward the head of her grand galaxy of patriots, possibly you might think I overestimated his merits, Stone said, quoting then several other historians and witnesses who spoke positively of Warren.

Fellow citizens of Warren Borough and County: You may well be proud of the name which has come to you by adoption, Stone said. It is an honorable name, none more so in the annals of American history and on it is no stain nor cloud. It is typical of courage, of candor, of self-respecting independence, of patriotism, of purity. It should inspire to high thinking and right living. It should bring to our minds the cost, and hence the value of the liberty we enjoy. Warrens life and death should be an inspiration to fidelity to the principles he championed, and of patriotic devotion to that government he gave his life to found.

He used Warren as a justification for the need to protect liberty and he said that can only be done with an intelligent, pure, independent, self-owning, uncorrupted electorate.

But, my Fellow Citizens, he continued, I must not, I will not digress but I would this people, if no other, they who collectively bear Warrens honored name and are thus linked to his memory and fame and who in years to come will be confronted by his almost speaking image in their midst, I would have this people true to the high ideals his character represents, true to the rules of conduct his example prescribes. Writing to General Gage, the royal governor, the day after the Battle of Lexington, he said: I have ever scorned disguise. I think I have done my duty.

What better epitaph to be placed on his monument! No pretense in life, no hypocrisy, no disguise, but an open, straightforward devotion to duty, and a martyrs crown at the end, Stone said, proud indeed should this people be to bear in their town and county the name of such a man.

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

Read more:
Stone's speech at the dedication of Warren statue in 1910 - timesobserver.com

Its not like just anyone can pick up the phone and call Donald Trump.

If you want Trump to blast out a news release touting his support for your candidacy in this years election, you need to know the right people. And in Michigan, the right people constitute an entire family tree.

Republicans from this political battleground say theres only one way to get the former presidents attention, and thats to know and support Michigan GOP co-chair Meshawn Maddock, her state representative husband Matt Maddock and their adult children, who are involved in varying degrees with the couples political endeavors.

Depending on which wing of the GOP you ask, the Maddocks are either savvy political operators or dangerous extremists who amplify election conspiracies and helped instigate the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The couple solidified their power trying to overturn the election in Michigan, then brokered nearly two dozen endorsements for their allies, according to Republicans who spoke to HuffPost, making their state the ultimate test for Trump as a GOP kingmaker in the midterms.

Its not unusual for a state party leader to consult major national players about endorsements or other matters, but theres no playbook for the states GOP leadership enlisting the former presidents direct involvement in lower-level races for their own political gain.

Its unprecedented, Bill Ballenger, a longtime political commentator in Michigan, told HuffPost. I mean, are you kidding? Richard Nixon or George H.W. Bush endorsing candidates for, you know, the 101st state House district nine months before the election? Its never happened.

Meshawn Maddock also broke protocol when she personally endorsed Trumps two picks for statewide office. Party leaders generally stay neutral until after primaries so they dont appear biased. Her announcement sent the GOP into damage control mode to make it clear that she wasnt speaking for the party.

Its dangerous, its unprecedented and its possibly transactional, said Jeff Timmer, a former Michigan GOP executive director who now works as a senior adviser to the Lincoln Project, the conservative group that formed in opposition to Trump.

Meshawn Maddock is like Marjorie Taylor Greene without the charm, he said, referring to the extremist House member from Georgia.

In few, if any, states has the former president weighed in this frequently down ballot: Trump has already endorsed in 10 state legislative contests as well as in two statewide and five congressional primaries. And hell be in Michigan this weekend promoting his entire slate at a MAGA rally designed to preempt a statewide Republican nominating convention later this month.

Its one way for Trump to put his thumb on the internal scale of the GOP in a state he lost in 2020 and still appears obsessed with more than a year after the election. Trump has said he wants a new legislature in Michigan that backs his false ideas about election fraud.

As Trump began spreading lies about a stolen election to justify his loss, the Maddocks were waiting in the wings for the right time to grab power. It finally happened in February 2021, when Meshawn Maddock, a 54-year-old grassroots activist who organized Women for Trump events before turning to election conspiracies, was elected state GOP co-chair alongside a member of the partys old guard and a major donor, Ron Weiser.

The Maddocks have been active since the Tea Party movement, Jason Watts, a GOP consultant, told HuffPost. They always tried to instigate precinct delegate coups in Oakland County, and they hadnt really been successful because they werent on the inside. They were always on the outside looking in. It wasnt until 2016, when Matt Maddock was one of the early Trump endorsers, that their fortunes turned. All of a sudden, people started taking Matts calls.

They latched on pretty quickly to the Trump train. And theyve rode that train for everything its worth.

- GOP consultant in Michigan

Not long into his second term, the 56-year-old private investigator and bondsman announced that he was running for Michigan House speaker, further signaling the couples desire to climb the political ladder.

They latched on pretty quickly to the Trump train, another Republican strategist in the state told HuffPost. And theyve rode that train for everything its worth.

This GOP strategist and several others cited facts around Trumps Michigan endorsements at the state legislative level they say allude to shady backroom deals that may not break the law but are still seen as underhanded.

In late December, a Detroit News reporter tweeted the observation that Trumps endorsed legislative candidates had all received campaign money from Matt Maddock or his leadership PAC, or had a member of the Maddock family serving as their treasurer evidence to some that a reciprocal relationship exists in some form.

Its clearly demonstrated that if you give the Maddocks money, if you hire their kids or ask them to keep the books for your PAC, you get a Trump endorsement, said the same GOP strategist, who was given anonymity to speak freely. Theres too many coincidences for that not to be true.

Neither Matt nor Meshawn Maddock responded to HuffPosts requests for interviews.

Michigan GOP spokesperson Gus Portela confirmed Meshawn Maddocks tight relationship with Trump.

She is arguably the closest GOP official in Michigan to the president, so of course there are rumors swirling about her, he said. But she will continue to have a close relationship with the president. What they talk about ... obviously, those conversations remain between them.

On Twitter, Meshawn Maddock has responded directly to critics whove accused her of running a pay-to-play operation. Jovan Pulitzer, a Texas inventor whom the Daily Beast described as a pillar of the MAGA election-fraud movement, speculated about whether endorsements were being sold in Michigan and the money somehow funneled to Trump. Meshawn Maddock snapped back by threatening to throw him under the bus.

So let me get this right, she tweeted on Nov. 23, youre accusing our great President of being paid off for endorsements? I just want to be sure before I give him a call ...

Even aside from the churning rumor mill, the Michigan endorsement process hasnt exactly been smooth.

Trump has hastily backed challengers in House districts where incumbent Republicans voted to impeach him for inciting the Capitol attack. Two of the 10 Republicans who voted with Democrats Reps. Peter Meijer and Fred Upton are from Michigan, and Trump has endorsed challengers in both of their primaries.

But in Uptons district, Trump acted before new congressional boundaries were settled, leading to a confusing situation this month when he effectively rescinded his endorsement for state Rep. Steve Carra in favor of an incumbent, U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, who was lumped into a new seat with Upton. It turns out Carra doesnt even live in Uptons new district.

Carra dropped out of that race after losing the endorsement although there was a short period when Trump was, at least publicly, awkwardly backing two people for the same job. He plans to run for reelection to the state House instead.

Its not clear whether Carra still has a Trump endorsement, or whether it even matters if hes running unopposed in a primary for reelection. Both men indicated there are no hard feelings, with Trump writing to Carra that he has a great future ahead.

Carra, 33, told HuffPost that he plans to see Trump at his rally Saturday. We have a good relationship and its an honor to have his endorsement, he said.

He also credited Meshawn Maddock with getting him Trumps support in the first place.

I had a few people who advocated to President Trump that he should look into and get to know me, he said. But yeah, the final one where he ended up endorsing us was after he had a conversation with Meshawn Maddock.

Mandi Wright/USA TODAY NETWORK

However, during a fundraiser this month for Matt DePerno, Trumps pick to take on Democrat Attorney General Dana Nessel, Trump didnt seem too familiar with Carra or his other candidates, according to a video of the event reviewed by HuffPost.

You have somebody running against Fred Upton. Thats another beauty, Fred Upton, Trump said from behind a lectern at Mar-a-Lago, his Florida golf club.

Steve Carra! someone in the audience shouted.

Wheres Steve? Trump asked as Carra approached the front of the crowd.

Trump didnt seem to notice Carra.

Well, good luck with that, Trump said, before turning his attention to other candidates in the audience.

At one point, Trump invited up three candidates for governor, a bizarre moment considering none of them had been endorsed.

Trump fundraisers arent cheap. Individual tickets to DePernos event cost between $2,500 and $25,000, and DePernos campaign paid more than $17,000 for catering and space rental at Mar-a-Lago, Bridge Michigan reported.

But for some candidates, especially ones struggling to break out, its a small price to pay for a brush with Trump that might change the trajectory of their campaigns.

Not everyone is so lucky, even those who worship Trump and parrot his election lies.

Mellissa Carone, the Michigan election worker who delivered a widely mocked and discredited testimony during an election fraud hearing, is running for state representative. She told HuffPost she hasnt gotten Trumps endorsement but would obviously welcome his support.

I believe President Trump will endorse me when the time is right. I have not spoken to him directly, hes not exactly the easiest person to get ahold of lol, she wrote in an email. I would be honored to have his blessing.

Timmer, the Lincoln Project consultant, thinks the Trump slate will have no problem winning their primaries, but ultimately will prove to be too radical or unknown to win in the general election.

Theyre endorsed candidates. Theyre going to win at this nominating convention, Timmer said, referring to the April 23 meeting where GOP delegates will endorse nominees. And theyre going to have complete and utter kooks nominated for secretary of state and attorney general, and theyre going to lose in November.

HuffPost attempted to contact each of Trumps endorsed legislative candidates, and got only one return phone call.

It was the Maddocks daughter Winsome Bricker, whose father-in-law, Mick Bricker, is running for state representative.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misidentified the position held by Jeff Timmer in the Michigan GOP.

View post:
Want Donald Trump's Endorsement In Michigan? You'll Have To Go Through This Family First. - HuffPost