By this time next week, there will be a republican nominee for governor. They will be the party’s choice to try to unseat Governor Gretchen Whitmer
This week, 9&10 News sat down one-on-one with the leading candidates and Friday finished with Mattawan chiropractor, Garrett Soldano.
One of the original leaders of Stand Up Michigan, the grassroots campaign fighting against COVID-19 restrictions, Soldano has taken a populist approach to his campaign.
At one point there were 10 candidates for the Republican nomination for the governor’s office and each one had their own reasons for getting into the race. Many were centered around the COVID-19 restrictions and that’s how Soldano got started, when he helped form Stand Up Michigan. Now he finds himself near the top of the race with just a few days left
“I really feel what’s going to give us the edge is our grassroots army,” said Soldano, “No other campaign has what we have and that’s our grassroots network that we built for a very, very long time.”
There’s the self-funded millionaire, the polished candidate backed by big donors, the aggressive activist and then there’s the grassroots candidate.
The GOP gubernatorial primary has one of everything and the primary election will show what Michigan’s Republicans agree with.
“Usually it is whoever has the most money usually can buy the race, can get on the media and stuff,” said Soldano, “But we’re finding out now in this political cycle, it’s little different.”
While some candidates get big money donations from all over the country, Soldano takes pride in his ability to connect with people individually.
“96% of that money comes from under the amount of $200,” said Soldano, “If you look at the amount of donations we are able to get, we are way ahead of everyone else.”
Soldano has attacked Tudor Dixon for her endorsement and donations by the Republican elites, like the DeVos family. However at some point, if he wins the nomination, Soldano too will have to bump elbows with the elites.
“Anyone that wants to donate to our campaign, they’re going to understand that there’s no strings attached,” said Soldano, “I’m bought and paid for by the people.”
Even with their help, the nominee will most likely not be able to match Governor Whitmer’s war chest. Soldano says his social skills will close the gap.
“If you don’t fundraise, you’re dead in the water. You have to have the ability to fundraise,” said Soldano, “You need more than just the establishment backing, you need the people.”
Soldano admits while his policy platforms may not be agreeable for all, his ability to be genuine is. He will attempt to ride that in the final days of the primary.
“There’s a lot of folks in our movement right now that do not agree with everything that I want to do in the state. They don’t like every policy or they don’t like some of the bills that I want to sign,” said Soldano, “They’re ok with it because they know I’m going to be transparent. They know I’m going to stand up for them.”
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