RNC Elects Trump Allies For Leadership Positions

Members of the Republican National Committee (RNC) have unanimously elected two key allies of former President and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump to the party’s leadership positions.

Michael Whatley, chairman of the North Carolina GOP, has been chosen as chair of the national RNC — while Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, has been selected as RNC co-chair. The votes took place during the RNC leadership meetings in Houston, Texas, on Friday after outgoing RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced that she would be stepping down.

McDaniel has faced strong opposition from the vast majority of conservatives, who have pointed to her numerous failures as RNC chairwoman. Former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy was especially tough on McDaniel — calling her out for failing to deliver election victories, failing to attract young voters to the GOP and letting leftist journalists host Republican debates.

“I’m sick and tired of this Republican Establishment that has made us a party of losers. Where is the accountability for years of losing: 2018, 2020, 2022 and now last night? I’m calling on @GOPChairwoman to resign tonight,” Ramaswamy wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, sharing a clip of himself calling McDaniel out to her face during the third GOP primary debate.

“We’ve become a party of losers at the end of the day,” he said during the debate. “We have to have accountability in our party. For that matter, Ronna, if you want to come on stage tonight and look the GOP voters in the eye and tell them you resign, I will turn over, yield my time to you.”

McDaniel has finally resigned, reportedly following a request from Trump to step down. She endorsed Whatley and Lara Trump for the RNC leadership roles.

“President Trump deserves to have the team he wants in place at the RNC,” she said while officially announcing her resignation on Friday.

“I will do everything possible to re-elect President Trump in November,” McDaniel added. “And I ask all of you out there who worked so hard during this primary season or supported another candidate, that you come in and join me in supporting our president as well.”

Whatley spoke to the crowd after winning his position, where he pointed ahead to the upcoming November election.

“In less than eight months, we are going to determine the fate of not only the United States but of the entire world,” he said. “And this body, the RNC, is going to be the vanguard of a movement that will work tirelessly, every single day to elect our nominee Donald J. Trump as the 47th president of the United States, flip the Senate, expand our majority in the House of Representatives.”

Lara Trump also gave remarks after being elected as co-chair, where she highlighted the importance of fundraising — holding up a $100,000 check that the RNC had just received.

“We are going to make sure that every single penny of every dollar goes towards one goal, which is winning,” she said.