Angela Rigas

Angela Rigas is an American politician from Michigan. A member of the Republican Party, she was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in the 2022 election from the 79th district, and took office in 2023. After the 2020 presidential election, Rigas questioned the election result and took part in the rally that preceded the January 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol.

Early political involvement and January 6 attack Rigas, a salon owner, defied stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan. In May 2020, she was one of seven barbers cited for disorderly conduct for their participation in the "Operation Haircut" protest, in which they refused to stop offering free haircuts on the lawn outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing. The charges against the seven were ultimately dismissed. In a January 6 Facebook post, Rigas denounced U.S. Capitol Police officers who responded to the riot, comparing them to Revolutionary-era British redcoats. Throughout 2021, Rigas promoted Trump's false claim that he was the real winner of the 2020 presidential election in Michigan, and she was among a number of election deniers who gained influence within the Michigan Republican Party.

Michigan House of Representatives 2022 election

In 2022, Rigas ran for the Michigan House of Representatives from the House District 79 in southwest Michigan. Rigas was one of at least 13 January 6 attendees to run for office in 2022,

She defeated two rivals in the August 2022 Republican primary election. In the November 2022 general election, she faced Democratic nominee Kimberly Kennedy-Barrington, of Byron Center, a Navy veteran and small business owner. Statewide, however, Michigan Republicans suffered historic losses, with Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer winning a second turn and the Democrats winning majorities in both the state House and state Senate for the first time in forty years. Days after the general election, Rigas, along with fellow Republicans Neil Friske and Steve Carra, formed the Grand New Party, a PAC that accused Michigan Republican leaders of being "too moderate" and called for a more aggressive strategy against Whitmer. In March 2023, Rigas was appointed to the executive board of the House Republican Campaign Committee. In a floor speech, Rigas called the package an example of "tyrannical government";

In June 2023, Rigas was one of a handful of representatives to vote against legislation to raise the minimum marriage age to 18. The bill passed on a 104–5, with four other Republicans (Carra, Friske, Maddock, and Josh Schriver) also voting no.

In September 2023, Rigas was one of 11 Michigan Republicans who sued the state in federal court, contending that Michigan voter-approved initiatives that expanded voting access (specifically, Proposal 3 of 2018 and Proposal 2 of 2022, which expanded access to in-person early voting and mail-in voting) were illegal. The federal district court dismissed the case in April 2024.

Rigas has been variously described as a resident of Alto or Caledonia.