Ralph Rebandt, a candidate in the 2022 primary, recently joined the crowded field of GOP candidates hoping to break Democratic rule in Lansing, Michigan, where term-limited Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D) cannot run for office again next year.
"I'm an outsider," he states. "I have no ties to Lansing. I don't owe anybody anything; they don't owe me anything."
Regarding the state House's recent and rare move to cancel $645 million in previously approved state spending, Rebandt praises Speaker Matt Hall and other Republicans for "finally taking a sledgehammer to irresponsible and unnecessary waste taken directly from Michigan taxpayers."
As governor, he vows the line-item veto "will be the most used tool in my belt."
"If your company was failing, you'd hire an outsider to come in to tell you a little bit about what you need to do and let that person be honest and actually give real solutions," he poses. "I am a problem solver, not a ladder climber."
Radical Islam is another problem he says he is prepared to solve in his state, which is home to an estimated 235,000–250,000 Muslims, or about 2.3–2.5% of the population. That is one of the highest proportions of Muslims in any U.S. state.
Dearborn is notable for having one of the largest Muslim populations in the country for a single city.
"My responsibility as governor is to protect everybody," Rebandt says. "When there are groups that are in bed with terrorists – like the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American Islamic Relations – they need to be removed from our state. I would partner with federal, state, and local agencies to make sure that those folks are gone."
According to his campaign website, Rebandt has served as a police and fire chaplain for multiple departments, and he played a strategic role in President Donald Trump's 2024 victory in Michigan.
He is a retired pastor from Farmington Hills who founded and led Oakland Hills Community Church. He emphasizes Judeo‑Christian values, parental rights, election integrity, school choice, and conservative social policies as part of his campaign platform.
