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Lang, Guzman fight for GOP secretary of state nomination in Michigan

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Republicans hoping to extend their 24-year reign at the helm of the secretary of state’s office will choose between an academic who co-chaired Donald Trump’s Michigan campaign and an accountant with business and nonprofit experience.

The winner of the nomination at Saturday’s GOP convention in Lansing will advance to face Democrat Jocelyn Benson. Republican Secretary of State Ruth Johnson is term-limited.

Both Joseph Guzman and Mary Treder Lang, the two remaining candidates after Shelby Township Clerk Stan Grot’s withdrawal last week, say their No. 1 priority is ensuring the integrity of elections. They each point to their career backgrounds to bolster why they would be best prepared to make it a focus.

The 58-year-old Lang, of Grosse Pointe Farms near Detroit, said she has been a certified public accountant for more than 30 years and worked in the computer security field for more than 15 years. That experience, she said, would help her fight cyberattacks, protect the personal information of people who vote and renew their driver’s licenses, and ensure “one citizen, one vote.”

Guzman, 57, lives in Okemos near Lansing and was an assistant professor of human resources and labor relations at Michigan State University until recently. He co-chaired Trump’s winning Michigan campaign in 2016 and previously worked at the Pentagon, where he led the biometric management office and had other jobs.

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