RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel has resigned from her position leading the Republican party and her successors have already been named.
As expected, Lara Trump, the daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump, has been named as co-chair of the Republican National Committee.
She replaces Drew McKissick, while North Carolina GOP chairman Michael Whately takes over for McDaniel. Whatley was also nominated by the former president, whose views Whatley shares when it comes to beliefs that there was voter fraud in the 2020 election, USA today reported.
Fox News said, “The Republican Party on Friday will formally once again become what in reality it has been for eight years – the party of Trump.”
It is the same notion communicated by New Hampshire GOP chair and former RNC committee member Chris Ager.
“Donald Trump is the presumptive nominee and this is the party of Trump,” Ager said according to Fox News.
McDaniel had been picked by Donald Trump after his presidential win in 2016, but he had pushed for her ouster after falling short in fundraising and his declining to participate in the RNC primary debates, the news outlet reported.
Lara Trump spoke to the committee that gathered in Houston, saying she was going to work for the party, not just Donald Trump.
“Bigly, we’re going to win,” she said, according to USA Today. She also called for “election integrity.”
The Associated Press said she will be focused on fundraising and media appearances.
While accepting his nomination, Whatley said he will be “getting out the vote” and “protecting the ballot” in the courts if necessary. He pledged support for Donald Trump and will also work to “flip the Senate” and add to the Republican majority in the House, USA Today reported.
For her part, McDaniel called for a unification in the party, saying, “We cannot win if we’re divided.”
In addition to Lara Trump’s new position in the party, the RNC officially declared her father-in-law the presumptive presidential nominee, USA Today reported.
The Hill reported that Lara Trump had said that she would spend “every single penny” to get the former president reelected. And now that he has been officially declared the presumptive nominee, he has the money from the RNC to campaign with and to fundraise, share data and other resources when he has enough delegates.
It has not been determined if the RNC will pay for his legal bills as he faces 91 charges in four separate cases. He also has to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in a civil fraud case, while also posting bond on Friday in a defamation case he lost earlier this year.
The former president’s team, however, has vowed not to use the RNC’s money in his legal battles, the AP reported.