Politics

Trump-Endorsed Candidate Throws Hat In The Ring To Succeed Ronna McDaniel As RNC Chair

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Michael Whatley, the chairman of the North Carolina GOP, made his campaign to lead the Republican National Committee (RNC) official on Monday, according to a letter obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Former President Donald Trump endorsed Whatley on Feb. 12 for the soon-to-be-open position, citing his commitment to election integrity in the battleground state. The state party chairman informed the RNC’s 168 members of his bid for the position in a letter just hours after RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel announced her resignation, and touted the support he has from Trump, according to the letter.

“Working together, we have an extraordinarily important opportunity ahead: America is depending on us to send President Trump back to the White House, expand our majority in the House of Representatives and win control of the Senate,” Whatley wrote. “If I am elected Chair, I will work tirelessly beside you, my fellow RNC members, the President’s campaign, and voters across the country to win in November and fix the damage that Joe Biden has inflicted on our country.”

Whatley detailed his plan for the RNC ahead of November, including being “laser-focused on registering new voters, pushing voters to the polls, and taking advantage of every opportunity to run up our margin in key states across the country.”

Whatley detailed his plan for the RNC ahead of November, which hinges on two main goals: “getting out the vote and protecting the ballot,” according to the letter. The Republican, who has supported Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen, pledged to recruit a massive amount of poll watchers and “file aggressive litigation where needed,” all to “hold Democrat officials accountable in court when they try to subvert election integrity.”

Politico first reported Whatley’s letter on Monday.

The New York Times reported on Feb. 6 that McDaniel would resign as chair following the South Carolina primary on Saturday, which Trump overwhelmingly secured against former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. The chair announced she’ll officially step down on March 8, which is when the next election for the position will be held in Houston, Texas.

RNC Co-Chair Drew McKissick, who also leads the South Carolina Republican Party, announced his resignation shortly after McDaniel did, also effective March. 8. Trump has thrown his support behind daughter-in-law Lara Trump to succeed McKissick, as well as his senior campaign adviser Chris LaCivita to be the RNC’s Chief Operating Officer.