Alleged Michigan Shooter Thomas Jacob Sanford's Politics Are Under Scrutiny

In a world where everything is politicized, mass shootings have become no exception. There is now a rush in the aftermath of every mass shooting to determine the shooter's politics as part of a broader effort to assign blame to one side or another. Of course, all shooters, to one extent or another, are thinking about the world differently from most people, which is why they decide to commit acts of heinous violence.

Following the news that an LDS church in Michigan had been attacked, and that a man named Thomas Jacob Sanford had been named the prime suspect, many immediately wanted to know what his political affiliation is. Here's what we know.

While we don't know his political affiliation for sure, it seems like Sanford's politics might line up more closely with the right than with the left. We don't know what his motivation was for the attack, but a candidate for the Burton City Council said that he was canvassing when he arrived at Sanford's door, and Sanford greeted him with a tirade against the church, describing Mormons as "the antichrist," per The Detroit Free Press.

Kris Johns, the candidate in question, said that Sanford began to ask him more and more pointed questions about LDS and Mormonism, and culminated with him suggesting that those who practiced the religion were the antichrist.

Sanford's son has a rare condition called hyperinsulinism, which reportedly took years to diagnose. Sanford can be seen wearing a Trump t-shirt in a photo on a Facebook page dedicated to his son.

There is also evidence of a Google Street View image connected to Sanford's address that appears to show a Trump-Pence sign in their yard. That picture was first taken in June of 2025, per USA Today. Sanford is also a registered voter in Burton, Mich., but records do not indicate the last time he voted. Voters in Michigan do not register by party, so that information is also unavailable.

Regardless of his political affiliation, Sanford is accused of ramming a pickup truck into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Mich. during a service with hundreds of people in attendance. After driving his truck into the building, he opened fire on those in attendance, killing four people and injuring eight others.

Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said that Sanford was using a semiautomatic rifle and that he used gasoline as an accelerant to set the church on fire. He died after exchanging fire with officers who were responding to the shooting.

Although there's likely to be plenty of debate online about what exactly Sanford believed, what's undisputed is the devastation he's caused in his community.