Michigan lawmakers plan to STRIP Gov Gretchen Whitmer of some of her powers as she faces more protests outside her home over her coronavirus lockdown measures

Michigan lawmakers are planning to strip the state's governor of her powers as anti-lockdown armed protesters gathered outside of her home on Thursday.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a first term democratic governor, is reportedly planning to extend Michigan's stay-at-home order until May 15 and continue lockdown measures designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus. 

A session has been scheduled for today (Friday) to create an oversight committee that would review Whitmer's coronavirus orders, and could strip her of some of her powers as Governor.

Lawmakers in Michigan are planning to strip the state's Governor, Gretchen Whitmer (pictured) of some powers following perceived excessive coronavirus lockdown measures

Whitmer, 48, has been accused by some critics of overstepping the authority of her position with the measures she has put in place in the state.

On April 9, she revised the stay-at-home orders to ban people from visiting friends and relatives, travelling to vacation homes and halted sales of certain items such as furniture and gardening supplies.

However, in a move that angered Michigan's more conservative corners, she said in a podcast interview that abortions should continue as the procedures are part of 'life-sustaining' health care for women.

As news spread that Whitmer was planning to extend the lockdown period, some protesters gathered outside the Governor's home (pictured)

As news spread that Whitmer was likely to extend the lockdown period until May 15, protesters gathered outside of her home in a display of dissatisfaction with the governor's lockdown measures.

Pictures from the scene show people carrying American and state flags, with some holding 'Trump 2020' placards. One protester held up a sign which read 'No more whitless dim Whit', playing on the governor's name.

As seen in other anti-lockdown protests around the country, some protesters were armed, carrying guns.

Some of the protesters carried guns (pictured) while demonstrating outside of Governor Whitmer's home in Michigan

Other protester's carried 'Trump 2020' signs, while others carried signs asking for them to be allowed back to work

The demonstration was dubbed 'operation Queen's castle', referencing Whitmer's perceived excessive implementation of the coronavirus lockdown measures.

Images shared by protesters on the group's Facebook event page showed Whitmer wearing a crown, according to Fox 2. 

On the page, a message said they were protesting 'near the taxpayer-funded mansion to advocate re-opening Michigan NOW, as well as ask Whitmer why she does not follow her own order and 'Stay Home, Stay Safe?'

Brian Pannebecker, who helped organize the protest, told the news outlet 'We wanted to send Gretchen Whitmer a message, we didn't want to surrender our liberties just for a little temporary safety.'

In a play on governor Whitmer's name, one protester carried signs that read 'No more whitless dim Whit'

Governor Whitmer has been in the news on numerous occasions during the coronavirus crisis.

On Tuesday she was forced to backtrack after she awarded a state contract to a Democratic consulting firm to track the spread of the coronavirus.

Her decision to award the contract to Great Lakes Community Engagement, a firm run by Mike Kolehouse, a Democratic political consultant who made unsavory comments about President Trump in recent weeks, drew immediate backlash.

The consultancy firm had planned to use software that is also used by a Democratic data firm that is working to help get the governor reelected.

The contract was worth $200,000 over an eight-week period, but Whitmer's administration has now admitted that it circumvented the process by which state contracts are normally awarded.

Republican's then weighed in and accused the governor of surreptitiously obtaining data that might be useful for her political campaign under the guise of a healthcare project.

She cancelled the contract and rescinded the funding abruptly after the backlash.

'This contract should have been approved by the State Emergency Operations Center,' a Whitmer spokesperson said to Fox News at the time. 

'This issue is being corrected, and a different vendor and software platform will be selected by the SEOC. The state is committed to ensuring this important tracing work can begin quickly to help save lives, while also ensuring that public health data is safe and secure.'

However, according to Crain's Detroit, Great Lakes Community Engagement had already been working on the project for the past three weeks despite not being announced publicly.

Kolehouse wrote in a tweet regarding Trump in March: 'I hope he gets coronavirus ASAP. Can someone do the country a favor and cough on that man?' 

According to data from the New York Times, there has been a total of 35,252 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Michigan, with 2,977 deaths as a result of the disease.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths in the U.S. passed another grim milestone yesterday as the figure rose past 50,000, reaching 50,442. The country has also seen 891,622 confirmed cases of the disease.