Embattled Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel would likely resign from her position if 2024 GOP front-runner Donald Trump said the word as the party grapples with shaky fundraising numbers, insiders told The Post.
Speculation that McDaniel was ready to leave the presidency increased Tuesday night after the New York Times reported that she planned to resign after the Feb. 24 primary in South Carolina, in which Trump is expected to win another great victory over her rival Nikki Haley.
RNC sources insisted the report was inaccurate, but acknowledged that McDaniel, 50, would be all ears after the race for first in the South.
“It’s true that Ronna was [at Mar-a-Lago with Trump on Monday]. And look, it was always the case that when we had a nominee, she would go up to the nominee and say, ‘How can we help? We’re here for you, and if you don’t want me here, that’s okay too,’” one committee member said.
Ronna McDaniel has chaired the Republican National Committee since 2017. AP
“Honestly,” added a Republican National Committee staffer, “she’s probably tired of being mistreated and has already said she’s done after this cycle anyway.”
McDaniel’s performance has come under scrutiny after the GOP lost the House in 2018, the White House and the Senate in 2020, and barely regained the House and failed to take back the Senate in 2022. She was re-elected to a fourth term in January of 2023, only to see the party finish the year with just $8 million in cash on hand, the lowest fourth-quarter figure in nine years.
“Although he won the race for president,” the employee added, “it has been a year in which outside people have asked him to resign, standing in the way of the RNC’s initiatives, and some of these outside actors have also flat out asked him people to stop donating to the committee.”
Donald Trump and Ronna McDaniel at a fundraiser in December 2017. AP
“We came out of a divisive election last year,” the committee member added, referring to the challenge to McDaniel by former Trump campaign legal counsel Harmeet Dhillon.
“There were two thirds [to] a third of the votes, and of that third, I would say that half of them continued to agitate non-stop against the RNC.”
Among members, McDaniel enjoys broad support, but there is growing awareness that a change may be best for everyone involved, the source added.
“There is a lot of support for Ronna, but we also take comfort in the idea that if the president wins big in South Carolina and lets it be known that he wants to go in a different direction, RNC members should work with our candidate to help implement changes,” added the committee member.
Donald Trump is the favorite to be the Republican candidate in 2024. AP
The 77-year-old former president privately endorsed McDaniel for a fourth term and sent some of his top lieutenants to lobby RNC voting members on his behalf, but the conduct of the party’s 2024 primaries left him with a bad taste. mouth.
“I don’t think it’s a secret that the Trump team didn’t want the RNC to have debates and an open primary process,” the member said. “But the RNC members wanted the candidates to compete on a level playing field, so she chose one for the team.”
McDaniel responded to the Times report in a Wednesday email to RNC members, writing: “Nothing has changed and no changes will be decided until after South Carolina, when we can have our eventual nominee,” said a source familiar with the message. The charge.
Not everyone will be sorry to see the back of McDaniel, who replaced Reince Priebus as chairman of the Republican National Committee in 2017 after Trump’s first White House chief of staff turned to him.
McDaniel arrives on stage before Kevin McCarthy speaks in 2022. AP
Meanwhile, the Republican National Committee member from New Jersey, who has been outspoken against McDaniel, said many RNC members share his sentiment that she should resign.
“Many of my fellow Republican National Committee members share the view that we’ve been losing for too long,” New Jersey committee member Bill Palatucci told the Post, “and that’s why we need to do something different now.”
Several names have already been floated as possible replacements for McDaniel, and Trump will recommend North Carolina Republican Party Chairman Michael Whatley, Fox News reported Wednesday, citing a source familiar with the matter.
South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Drew McKissick is some conservatives’ pick to get the nod, Republican National Committeeman Tyler Bowyer from Arizona. said in X.
A New Jersey National Committee member said many Republican National Committee members share the sentiment that she should resign. AP
McKissick did not immediately respond to a question from the Post, but a well-connected South Carolina agent said they wouldn’t be “surprised” if McKissick was looking for the job.
“He is very aligned with Trump. He’s been in the trenches and knows the people,” the person said.
Bowyer also suggested Dhillon, RNC Treasurer KC Crosbie or Delaware Republican Party Chairwoman Julianne Murray as candidates to co-chair the party.
“I highly recommend the other two!” Dhillon responded.
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