Republican Party Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced today that she is stepping down as leader, nine months before the presidential election, after pressure from Donald Trump, the party’s front-runner for the nomination.
The development reflects the former president’s influence on the party as it prepares for a potential rematch with Democrat Joe Biden on November 5.
After meeting with McDaniel in early February, Trump wrote on social media that he would push for changes in Republican National Committee (RNC) after the South Carolina primary, which was held last Saturday. Trump won this caucus handily, even though his opponent, Nikki Haley, was a former governor of that state.
Two weeks ago, Trump endorsed Michael Whatley, the North Carolina GOP chairman, for the RNC chairmanship, co-chaired by his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, wife of his son, Eric. Whatley was among those who adopted Trump’s false claims of fraud in the 2020 election, according to a CNN report.
McDaniel is out
“The RNC has historically been subject to change when we have had a candidate, and it has always been my intention to honor that tradition. I remain committed to the goal of winning back the White House and electing Republicans in the November election,” McDaniel said in her statement. She also thanked Trump and clarified that her resignation would take effect at the RNC’s spring meeting on March 8, three days after Super Tuesday, the primary elections in 15 US states. At the same time, her RNC co-chair Drew McKissick will also step down.
The RNC plays an important role in raising money for the presidential candidate, promoting the party’s message, raising other resources and attracting voters. Whoever replaces McDaniel will take on the difficult task of uniting a divided party.
McDaniel was re-elected last year as RNC chair to a fourth two-year term. But some Republicans have criticized her, particularly for the party’s performance in the election. Trump was defeated in the 2020 presidential election and the party underperformed in the 2022 midterm elections. Outcry against her intensified this month when it was revealed that at the end of December the RNC had just $8 million in cash — the lowest level for a decade—and that the Democratic National Committee raised more resources than the Republicans.
$540 million in fines and restitution
As Trump tries to consolidate his hold on the party leadership, an RNC member has filed motions that would bar the party from paying the former president’s legal fees. Trump faces four criminal lawsuits and two civil lawsuits that have resulted in fines and restitution of about $540 million. Lara Trump, when asked last week whether the RNC should pay her father-in-law’s fines, didn’t rule it out.
Trump had endorsed McDaniel, the niece of his staunch critic and former presidential candidate (2012) Mitt Romney, for the RNC chair after she helped win her home state of Michigan in the 2016 presidential primary. Until then, McDaniel used her full name, Ronna Romney McDaniel, but after receiving Trump’s endorsement, she dropped her uncle’s last name. Many media outlets claimed that this was done at Trump’s request.
Mitt Romney, now a Utah senator, denounced Trump as a “liar and a fraud” in a blistering speech in March 2016, when he urged Republicans to reject the businessman who was then running for their party’s nomination.
Source: RES-MPE
#USA #Republican #president #resigned #pressure #Trump
