Voters in Michigan rejected and recalled numerous officials who had thrown their support behind the development of a Chinese Communist Party (CCP)-linked battery firm in their community in Tuesday night’s local elections, according to numerous local reports.
Five of the seven members of the Green Charter Township board were recalled after they approved a property tax abatement plan to bring a Gotion, Inc. battery plant to the community, with other two members resigning before voters went to the polls. Voters also recalled the township’s clerk, the township’s treasurer and two other trustees, according to local outlet ABC 13.
The township supervisor lost to a challenger, and voters rejected the creation of the Green Charter Planning Commission to work on the planning and zoning for the battery plant, which many locals opposed because of Gotion Inc.’s links to the CCP via its parent company, China-based Gotion High-Tech.
Many residents of Green Charter Township and Mecosta County have coalesced against the plant for months, routinely citing its links to the CCP. The project has drawn scrutiny from Republicans on the national level for its China links.
“Gotion is a multinational company that does not engage in political posturing,” said Chuck Thelen, vice president of Gotion Inc., of the results, according to ABC13. “We continue to steadfastly work to meet our commitment of creating 2,350 jobs in the state of Michigan while communicating factually and transparently with all regulatory organizations.”
Gotion Inc. has numerous connections to the CCP; Parent company Gotion High-Tech employed 923 active members of the Chinese Communist Party as of 2022, including CEO Li Zhen, the DCNF reported. Thelen asserted that the CCP has no presence in the North American branch of the company, Politico reported on Aug. 13.
CCP officials also established a talent recruitment “work station” at Gotion Inc.’s Fremont, California, headquarters in 2017, the DCNF reported. “Work stations” are a key tactic that CCP officials use to attract Western talent to work in the Chinese mainland.
Nick Pope on November 8, 2023
