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Matt DePerno runs for Michigan attorney general again despite felony charges

Matt DePerno has filed the initial campaign paperwork to run for Michigan attorney general again. Photo credit: Jonathan Oosting/Bridge Michigan.

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by Hayley Harding, Votebeat (Bridge Michigan)

Matt DePerno, the Michigan lawyer facing felony charges for allegedly tampering with voting machines in a hotel room in 2020, is taking another shot at becoming the state top law enforcement officer.

DePerno on Wednesday filed paperwork with the state run for attorney general, kickstarting a second potential campaign for the office he lost to Dana Nessel in 2022 by about 8 percentage points.

In 2023, a special prosecutor — appointed at Nessel request in 2022, when the two were rival candidates for office — charged DePerno with undue possession of a voting machine, willfully damaging a voting machine, and two counts of conspiracy.

According to The Detroit News, DePerno boasted about the effort on a 2021 podcast. Court documents have since said he was regularly present for “testing” on voting equipment in hotel rooms where the machines were allegedly being examined outside the legal chain of custody. His case, alongside former Republican state Rep. Daire Rendon, have been remanded to lower courts for preliminary exams. Attorney Stephanie Lambert is heading to trial for her alleged role.

DePerno has been a popular conservative source for false or misleading claims on elections since 2020. His campaign to become attorney general in 2022 while being investigated by that office — and promising to put Nessel in prison if he won — were unprecedented in the history of Michigan politics.

While the case continues, DePerno has sought other offices. He ran for chair of the Michigan GOP in 2023, endorsed by President Donald Trump and Mike Lindell. He lost that race to Kristina Karamo, who ran for secretary of state as a Republican alongside DePerno in 2022. DePerno also briefly ran for a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court last year before dropping out.

DePerno did not respond to a request for comment from Votebeat on Thursday.

He has a few hurdles ahead to become the Republican nominee. While voters choose gubernatorial candidates for both major parties in primary elections, candidates for attorney general and secretary of state are chosen at their respective party conventions, which won’t happen until next summer.

Other Republicans running for attorney general include Kevin Kijewski, a lawyer from Birmingham who is defending one of the 15 people facing felony charges for allegedly signing a certificate falsely claiming Trump won Michigan in the 2020 election; and Doug Lloyd, Eaton County prosecutor. Democrats seeking the office include Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald, Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit, and former U.S. Attorney Mark Totten.

DePerno, who was admitted to the Michigan bar in 1995, may face disbarment for alleged professional misconduct in a different case, in which he was representing a former state representative who was accused of trying to cover up an affair.

Attorneys general in Michigan can only serve two four-year terms. Nessel second term ends Jan. 1, 2027.

Hayley Harding is a reporter for Votebeat based in Michigan. Contact Hayley at hharding@votebeat.org.

by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.