The Georgia Republican Party announced former Vice President Mike Pence will no longer be the keynote speaker at the party’s state convention next week, citing a scheduling conflict related to his town hall next Wednesday.
The party announced on Wednesday that former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake would be the new keynote speaker via an email to delegates confirmed to the Washington Examiner.
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“I am delighted to announce that Kari Lake will be the keynote speaker at our Victory Dinner Friday evening, June 9,” the email said.
“Vice President Mike Pence was originally slated but has been forced to re-schedule because of a televised national town hall at which he will be making an announcement regarding his future plans. He will instead be sending us video greetings,” the email continued.
Pence is scheduled to appear on a CNN town hall on June 7 at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa. The former vice president is expected to announce his 2024 plans next week.
Lake is reportedly considering a run for Senate in 2024 after losing the 2022 gubernatorial election in the Grand Canyon State to now-Gov. Katie Hobbs (D-AZ) in a close race. The former television anchor has repeatedly claimed election fraud, but none of her multiple challenges in court have proven evidence of election fraud.
Other speakers at the 2023 Georgia GOP convention include presidential candidates Donald Trump, Asa Hutchinson, and Vivek Ramaswamy, along with various members of Congress and officials from the Peach State.
Notably absent from the lineup is Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA), who has distanced himself from the state party.
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Trump has been a vocal critic of Kemp and endorsed David Perdue against Kemp in the 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary. Kemp soundly defeated Purdue by 52% in the primary and handily defeated Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams in the general election. In the same election, Trump-endorsed GOP Senate candidate Herschel Walker lost to Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) in a runoff.
The state GOP convention is scheduled for June 9-10 and will be held in Columbus, Georgia.
