Michigan candidate Terri DeBoer spoke alongside 2020 election deniers

During an April 16 campaign event, Michigan 3rd Congressional district candidate Terri DeBoer (R) spoke alongside state Rep. Rachelle Smit (R-Martin), a vocal election denier.

The April 16 event was a campaign kickoff for state Rep. Joseph Fox’s state Senate bid. Audio from the event obtained by Heartland Signal shows that Smit spoke about her quick ascent in state politics. After being elected to the state House in 2022, Smit now serves as the chamber’s second most powerful Republican after being unanimously elected to serve as speaker pro tempore in 2025.

During Fox’s event, Smit — who also chairs the Michigan House Election Integrity Committee — reiterated her belief that the 2020 Presidential election was “stolen” by Joe Biden.

“So I was kind of painted as this far-right, crazy, MAGA person that’s an election denier,” Smit said. “And to this day, I will still say yes, the 2020 election was stolen.”

Listen to the full audio here.

President Donald Trump has consistently claimed that the 2020 election was stolen from him without providing proof. After his allies launched over 60 lawsuits alleging widespread voter fraud, all except one were either dismissed, settled or withdrawn because many of them lacked merit or credible evidence.

During the event, Fox also said he got into politics because of the 2020 election results.

“And for me, the reason I got into politics, I think it was a lot like Rachelle. Barbara and I went to bed on the night of the 2020 election. Trump was way ahead, okay? And we thought, okay, we’ll wake up to having him in here for another term,” Fox said (2:21:25). “And the next morning, the guy campaigning from his basement who got 81 million votes. No president has ever gotten 81 million. Trump got 78 million. The closest ever to Biden was Obama with 68 million. Where did those 13 million other votes come from? So we started praying.”

Michigan’s 3rd District

DeBoer, a former weather reporter for WOOD-TV, also spoke during the event and said the 2026 elections are critical because “our country is teetering.”

“We’re teetering on this incredible capitalist republic completely falling apart. It is terrifying to think that the Electoral College, which guarantees representation for everyone whether you live in Iowa or Louisiana or one of those massive blue states that we all have the opportunity to be represented and if the electoral college is over We will no longer have representation. So I am running because I love this country,” DeBoer said (1:42:56).

DeBoer’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment on whether she agrees with Smit’s election denying record, or why she believes protecting the Electoral College is a fixture of her candidacy. DeBoer’s campaign website says West Michiganders “deserve selfless leadership that will put them first, not a politician’s agenda,” which conflicts with her willingness to share a stage with Smit and Fox.

DeBoer also criticized her opponent, incumbent U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-MI) for voting “95% of the time with a liberal left wing.” Scholten won Michigan’s 3rd Congressional seat in 2022, becoming the first Democrat to represent the district that encompasses Grand Rapids and parts of Western Michigan since 1993.

DeBoer is the Republican frontrunner to challenge Scholten’s reelection bid this November. The political newcomer is receiving significant financial support from Trump’s former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and members of her family. Nearly half of DeBoer’s initial fundraising numbers ($105,000) came from members of the DeVos family after she launched her campaign on March 5.