County GOP chair resigns over social media posts

The chairman of the Marquette County, Mich., Republican Party has resigned from his position amid growing scrutiny over social media posts where he reportedly expressed low Republican enthusiasm for the upcoming midterm elections.

Jackson Karki, 19, resigned from his position after he was linked to the anonymous “Red Lion Politics” account on the social platform X.

“The vibes on the ground are the worst I’ve seen in my life. No one wants to promote candidates, no one wants to knock doors, no one wants to do s—,” Karki wrote on the account. “Attendance for any right wing event is at all time lows anywhere I go. Thank you Donald Trump for ruining it for us… and handing the country over to socialism.”

He also worked as the chairman of at least four Michigan counties for former Rep. Mike Rogers’s (R-Mich.) Senate bid, according Straight from The Hut .

“And as someone that has knock doors the energy of the people answering the doors is terrible as well,” he added .

Karki criticized the GOP in a statement to The Detroit News , writing, “the Republican Party is meant to be the party of debate, open discussion and integrity.”

“As of late, the party has become very tight-knit and, in some ways, the opposite of those things,” he continued. “I hope those inside the party start to realize what’s going on instead of being ignorant, because ignorance is the root of losing.”

Marquette County’s interim chairwoman Jennifer Jermalowicz also told the outlet that the organization was not aware that Karki “was making inflammatory comments about fellow Republicans,” including his remarks against Trump.

She confirmed that the organization’s leadership would be meeting on how to respond to Karki’s posts.

His words come as Rogers competes in a battleground election against progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed.

Republicans took control of the district’s state House election seat in 2024. However in the same election, President Trump lost the county by around 3,000 votes to former Vice President Kamala Harris.

In a Suffolk University poll, El-Sayed held a 7-point lead against Rogers among 500 likely Michigan voters. Eleven percent of those surveyed said they were still unsure of their vote.

The Marquette County Republican Party did not respond immediately to The Hill’s request for comment.