Republican National Committee

Last updated
Republican National Committee
FoundedJune 1856; 168 years ago
Location
Key people
Affiliations Republican Party
Website www.gop.com

The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. [3] It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fundraising and election strategy. [4] It is also responsible for organizing and running the Republican National Convention. When a Republican is president, the White House controls the committee. According to Boris Heersink, "political scientists have traditionally described the parties' national committees as inconsequential but impartial service providers." [5] [6]

Contents

Similar committees exist in every U.S. state and most U.S. counties, although in some states party organization is structured by congressional district, allied campaign organizations being governed by a national committee. Michael Whatley is the current committee chairman. [7]

The Democratic Party's counterpart to the RNC is the Democratic National Committee.

History

The 1856 Republican National Convention appointed the first RNC. It consisted of one member from each state and territory to serve for four years. Each national committee since then has followed the precedent of equal representation for each state or territory, regardless of population. From 1924 to 1952, there was a national committeeman and national committeewoman from each state and U.S. possession, and from Washington, D.C. In 1952, committee membership was expanded to include the state party chairs of states that voted Republican in the preceding presidential election, have a Republican majority in their congressional delegation (U.S. representatives and senators), or have Republican governors. By 1968, membership reached 145. As of 2011, the RNC has 168 members. [8]

While a number of the chairs of the RNC have been state governors, the only person to have chaired the RNC and later become U.S. president is George H. W. Bush. During Bush's time as RNC chair, Spiro Agnew was being investigated for corruption, which would later lead to Agnew's resignation as vice president. Bush assisted, at the request of Nixon and Agnew, in getting John Glenn Beall Jr., the U.S. Senator from Maryland, to pressure his brother, George Beall the U.S. Attorney in Maryland, to shut down the investigation into Agnew. Attorney Beall ignored the pressure. [9]

In 2013, the RNC began an outreach campaign towards the American youth and minority voters, after studies showed these groups generally perceived that the Republican Party did not care about their concerns. [10]

During the presidency of Donald Trump, the RNC showed staunch loyalty to President Trump, even at times when prominent Republicans did not. Under Ronna McDaniel's leadership, the RNC ran ads for Trump's 2020 campaign as early as 2018, put numerous Trump campaign workers and affiliates on the RNC payroll, spent considerable funds at Trump-owned properties, covered his legal fees in the Russian interference investigation, hosted Trump's Fake News Awards, and criticized Trump critics within the Republican Party. [11] Two days after the January 6th riot at the Capitol following the controversial 2020 presidential election results, the RNC held an event where members expressed loyalty to the President. [12]

In February 2022, the RNC censured two Republican representatives, Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, for their participation in the United States House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the US Capitol; the censure statement described the committee as a "Democrat-led persecution of ordinary citizens who engaged in legitimate political discourse." [13] The censure of sitting congressmembers, and particularly the description of the January 6 events as "legitimate political discourse", received bipartisan criticism from politicians and media. [14] [15]

Role

The Republican National Committee's main function is to assist the Republican Party of the United States. It helps to promote the Republican political platform and the "party brand" or image. It helps coordinate fundraising and election strategy.

It is also responsible for organizing and running the Republican National Convention.

According to Jim Nicholson, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee:

“The party can’t coordinate with these Super PACs and neither can the campaigns so there’s a lot more chaos . . . .And the party structure clearly has a diminished role because they don’t have the resources they used to have.” [16]

Organization

The current chair of the Republican National Committee is Michael Whatley, since March 8, 2024. Whatley was previously chair of the North Carolina Republican Party from 2019 to 2024. [17] [18]

The previous chair of the Republican National Committee was Ronna McDaniel, serving from 2017 to 2024. McDaniel was chair of the Michigan Republican Party from 2015 to 2017. [19]

In January 2019, Thomas O. Hicks Jr. was elected co-chairman of the RNC. Hicks has a strong connection to former President Trump's campaigns and policy initiatives, having served as chairman of the America First Action PAC and America First Policies, and as national finance co-chairman for Donald J. Trump for President. [19]

Similar committees to the RNC exist in each U.S. state and most U.S. counties. The RNC also organizes volunteer groups for specific interests, such as the Black Republican Activists, GOP Hispanics, RNC Women (not to be confused with National Federation of Republican Women), GOP Faith, Asian Pacific Americans, Young Leaders and Veterans & Military Families. [19]

Other national leaders

[19]

Chairs of the Republican National Committee

List of Republican National Committee Chairs
#ChairTermState [20]
1 EDMorgan.jpg Edwin Morgan 1856–1864 New York
2 HJRaymond.jpg Henry Raymond 1864–1866 New York
3 Marcus Lawrence Ward (1812-1884) circa 1860.jpg Marcus Ward 1866–1868 New Jersey
4 William Claflin - Brady-Handy.jpg William Claflin 1868–1872 Massachusetts
5 EDMorgan.jpg Edwin Morgan 1872–1876 New York
6 Zachariah Chandler.jpg Zachariah Chandler 1876–1879 Michigan
7 James Donald Cameron Brady-Handy.jpg Donald Cameron 1879–1880 Pennsylvania
8 Marshall Jewell - Brady-Handy.jpg Marshall Jewell 1880–1883 Connecticut
9 DwightSabin.jpg Dwight Sabin 1883–1884 Minnesota
10 BenjaminFJones.jpg Benjamin Jones 1884–1888 New Jersey
11 History of Beaver County, Pennsylvania and its centennial celebration, (1904) (14804406853).jpg Matthew Quay 1888–1891 Pennsylvania
12 JamesSClarkson.jpg James Clarkson 1891–1892 Iowa
13 William J. Campbell.png William Campbell [21] [22] [23] 1892 Illinois
14 Portrait of Thomas H. Carter.jpg Thomas Carter 1892–1896 Montana
15 Mark Hanna by WJ Root, 1896 (cropped).jpg Mark Hanna 1896–1904 Ohio
HCPayne.jpg Henry Payne (Acting)1904 Wisconsin
16 Cortelyou-george-bruce.jpg George Cortelyou 1904–1907 New York
17 HSNew.jpg Harry New 1907–1908 Indiana
18 FHHitchcock.jpg Frank Hitchcock 1908–1909 Ohio
19 John Fremont Hill, 1855-1912, head and shoulders, c1900.jpg John Hill (Acting: 1909–1911)1909–1912 Maine
20 Victor Rosewater 001.jpg Victor Rosewater 1912 Nebraska
21 Chas. D. Hilles, Geo. Kadel - Geo. Kadel LCCN2014681238 (cropped).jpg Charles Hilles 1912–1916 New York
22 William Russell Willcox circa 1915-1916 (cropped).jpg William Willcox 1916–1918 New York
23 Will-H-Hays.jpg Will Hays 1918–1921 Indiana
24 ADAMS, JOHN T. LCCN2016861142.jpg John Adams 1921–1924 Iowa
25 Senator Wm. M. Butler of Mass., (11-28-24) LCCN2016849799 (cropped).jpg William Butler 1924–1928 Massachusetts
26 HWork-SecofInter2.jpg Hubert Work 1928–1929 Colorado
27 Claudius H. Huston (cropped).jpg Claudius Huston 1929–1930 Tennessee
28 Simeon D. Fess cph.3a38813.jpg Simeon Fess 1930–1932 Ohio
29 EverettSanders.jpg Everett Sanders 1932–1934 Indiana
30 Henry P. Fletcher.jpg Henry Fletcher 1934–1936 Pennsylvania
31 GOP chairman John Hamilton opens national committee meeting. Washington, D.C., Nov. 29, 1938.jpg John Hamilton 1936–1940 Kansas
32 Joseph W. Martin (1939 cropped).jpg Joseph Martin 1940–1942 Massachusetts
33 Harrison E. Spangler on December 7, 1939 - LCCN2016876702 (cropped).jpg Harrison Spangler 1942–1944 Iowa
34 Herbert Brownell.jpg Herbert Brownell 1944–1946 New York
35 B. Carroll Reece.jpg Carroll Reece 1946–1948 Tennessee
36 SenHughScott.jpg Hugh Scott 1948–1949 Pennsylvania
37 Guy Gabrielson 1949–1952 New Jersey
38 Arthur Summerfield (cropped).jpg Arthur Summerfield 1952–1953 Michigan
39 C. Wesley Roberts 1953 Kansas
40 Leonard W. Hall.jpg Leonard Hall 1953–1957 New York
41 Meade Alcorn 1957–1959 Connecticut
42 Thruston B Morton.jpg Thruston Morton 1959–1961 Kentucky
43 Representative William E. Miller.png William Miller 1961–1964 New York
44 Dean Burch Cabinet.jpg Dean Burch 1964–1965 Arizona
45 Ray Bliss 1965–1969 Ohio
46 RogersClarkBallardMorton.jpg Rogers Morton 1969–1971 Maryland
47 Ks 1996 dole.jpg Bob Dole 1971–1973 Kansas
48 George H. W. Bush official CIA portrait.jpg George H. W. Bush 1973–1974 Texas
49 Ford A0747 NLGRF photo contact sheet (1974-09-13)(Gerald Ford Library) (cropped1).jpg Mary Smith 1974–1977 Iowa
50 Bill brock.jpg Bill Brock 1977–1981 Tennessee
51 Dick Richards 1981–1983 Utah
Paul Laxalt 2000.jpg Paul Laxalt (General Chair)1983–1987 Nevada
52 Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr. speaks at a press conference (cropped).jpg Frank Fahrenkopf (National Chair) Nevada
Frank Fahrenkopf 1987–1989 Nevada
53 Lee Atwater.jpg Lee Atwater 1989–1991 South Carolina
54 Clayton Yeutter (cropped).jpg Clay Yeutter 1991–1992 Nebraska
55 Ronald Reagan with Richard Bond 1982 (cropped).jpg Richard Bond 1992–1993 Missouri
56 Haley Barbour by Gage Skidmore.jpg Haley Barbour 1993–1997 Mississippi
57 JimNicholson.jpg Jim Nicholson 1997–2001 Colorado
58 Jim Gilmore 2004 NSTAC crop.jpg Jim Gilmore 2001–2002 Virginia
59 Marc Racicot 2008.JPG Marc Racicot 2002–2004 Montana
60 Ed Gillespie - Fairfax County GOP Meeting.JPG Ed Gillespie 2004–2006 Virginia
61 Ken Mehlman Picture.jpg Ken Mehlman 2006–2007 District of Columbia
Mel Martinez.jpg Mel Martínez (General Chair)2007 Florida
62 Mike Duncan official photo.jpg Mike Duncan (National Chair) Kentucky
2007–2009
63 Michael Steele.jpg Michael Steele 2009–2011 Maryland
64 White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus at CPAC 2017 February 23rd 2017 by Michael Vadon 21.jpg Reince Priebus 2011–2017 Wisconsin
65 Ronna McDaniel.jpg Ronna Romney McDaniel 2017–2024 Michigan
66 Michael Whatley 2024–present North Carolina

Elections

1993 election

CandidateRound 1Round 2Round 3
Haley Barbour 606690
Spencer Abraham 475257
Bo Callaway 221918
John Ashcroft 2620Withdrew
Craig Berkman 108Withdrew
  Candidate won majority of votes in the round
  Candidate secured a plurality of votes in the round
  Candidate withdrew

1997 election

CandidateRound 1Round 2Round 3Round 4Round 5Round 6
Jim Nicholson 2330386574*
David Norcross 4146475047Withdrew
Steve Merrill 4242434643Withdrew
John S. Herrington 4433Withdrew-
Tom Pauken 222421Withdrew-
Chuck Yob 171812Withdrew-
Robert T. Bennett 15Withdrew
  Candidate won majority of votes in the round
  Candidate secured a plurality of votes in the round
  Candidate withdrew
  • Merrill and Norcross both dropped out after the fifth round, giving the chairmanship to Nicholson by acclamation.

2009 election

On November 24, 2008, Steele launched his campaign for the RNC chairmanship with the launching of his website. [24] On January 30, 2009, Steele won the chairmanship of the RNC in the sixth round, with 91 votes to Dawson's 77. [25]

Source: CQPolitics, [26] and Poll Pundit. [27]

CandidateRound 1Round 2Round 3Round 4Round 5Round 6
Michael Steele 464851607991
Katon Dawson 282934626977
Saul Anuzis 2224243120Withdrew
Ken Blackwell 20191515Withdrew-
Mike Duncan 524844Withdrew
  Candidate won majority of votes in the round
  Candidate secured a plurality of votes in the round
  Candidate withdrew

On announcing his candidacy to succeed RNC Chairman Duncan, former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele described the party as being at a crossroads and not knowing what to do. "I think I may have some keys to open the door, some juice to turn on the lights," he said. [28]

Six people ran for the 2009 RNC Chairmanship: Steele, Ken Blackwell, Mike Duncan, Saul Anuzis, Katon Dawson and Chip Saltsman. After Saltsman's withdrawal, there were only five candidates during the hotly contested balloting January 30, 2009.

After the third round of balloting that day, Steele held a small lead over incumbent Mike Duncan of Kentucky, with 51 votes to Duncan's 44. Shortly after the announcement of the standings, Duncan dropped out of contention without endorsing a candidate. [29] Ken Blackwell, the only other African-American candidate, dropped out after the fourth ballot and endorsed Steele, though Blackwell had been the most socially conservative of the candidates and Steele had been accused of not being "sufficiently conservative." Steele picked up Blackwell's votes. [30] After the fifth round, Steele held a ten-vote lead over Katon Dawson, with 79 votes, and Saul Anuzis dropped out. [31] After the sixth vote, he won the chairmanship of the RNC over Dawson by a vote of 91 to 77. [32]

Mississippi Governor and former RNC chair Haley Barbour has suggested the party will focus its efforts on congressional and gubernatorial elections in the coming years rather than the next presidential election. "When I was chairman of the Republican National Committee the last time we lost the White House in 1992 we focused exclusively on 1993 and 1994. And at the end of that time, we had both houses of Congress with Republican majorities, and we'd gone from 17 Republican governors to 31. So anyone talking about 2012 today doesn't have their eye on the ball. What we ought to worry about is rebuilding our party over the next year and particularly in 2010," Barbour said at the November 2008 Republican Governors conference. [33]

2011 election

Chairman of the Republican National Committee Reince Priebus at the Western Republican Leadership Conference in October 2011 in Las Vegas Reince Priebus by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg
Chairman of the Republican National Committee Reince Priebus at the Western Republican Leadership Conference in October 2011 in Las Vegas

Michael Steele ran for re-election at the 2011 RNC winter meeting. [34] Other candidates were Reince Priebus, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman, Ann Wagner, former Ambassador to Luxembourg, Saul Anuzis, former Republican Party Chairman of Michigan, and Maria Cino, former acting Secretary of Transportation under George W. Bush. Steele's critics increasingly called on him to step down as RNC Chair when his term ended in 2011. A debate for Chairman hosted by Americans for Tax Reform took place on January 3 at the National Press Club. [35] [36] The election for Chairman took place January 14 at the RNC's winter meeting with Reince Priebus winning on the seventh ballot after Steele and Wagner withdrew.

CandidateRound 1Round 2Round 3Round 4Round 5Round 6Round 7
Reince Priebus 45525458678097
Saul Anuzis 24222124323743
Maria Cino 32302829403428
Ann Wagner 232732282817Withdrew
Michael Steele 44373328Withdrew
  Candidate won majority of votes in the round
  Candidate secured a plurality of votes in the round
  Candidate withdrew

2013–2023 elections

Priebus won re-election with near unanimity in the party's 2013 meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina. [37] He was re-elected to a third term in 2015, setting him up to become the longest serving head of the party ever. [38]

After winning in November 2016, President-elect Donald Trump designated Priebus as his White House Chief of Staff, to begin upon his taking office in January 2017; David Bossie of Maryland was seen as a potential next RNC chairman. [39]

Trump then recommended Ronna Romney McDaniel as RNC Chairwoman and she was elected to that role by the RNC in January 2017. McDaniel was re-elected in 2019 and 2021. [40] Mike Lindell announced that he would challenge McDaniel in 2023. Lindell accused McDaniel of not denying the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election forcefully enough, and criticized her for presiding over the RNC during three disappointing election years. [41] McDaniel was re-elected in to a fourth term in January 2023, easily defeating Lindell and California RNC committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon. [42]

CandidateRound 1
Ronna McDaniel 111
Harmeet Dhillon 51
Mike Lindell 4
Lee Zeldin 1

  Candidate won majority of votes in the round

2024 election

On February 6, 2024, The New York Times reported that McDaniel intended to resign after the South Carolina Republican presidential primary held on February 24, 2024, following dissatisfaction from former president Donald Trump, who publicly supported North Carolina Republican Party chair Michael Whatley. [43] [44]

McDaniel confirmed these reports when, on February 26, 2024, she and Drew McKissick announced their resignations as chair and co-chair of the RNC effective on March 8, 2024. [45] Later that same day, Micheal Whatley, chair of the North Carolina Republican Party, announced that he would seek the position of RNC chair.

Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of former president Donald Trump, also announced on February 28 that she would seek to succeed McKissick as co-chair of the RNC. [46] Both Whatley and Trump gained the endorsement of former President Trump.

Whatley and Trump were both elected via acclamation as chair and vice-chair of the Republican National Committee on March 8, 2024.

Chair
CandidateRound 1
Michael Whatley Acclamation
Co-Chair
CandidateRound 1
Lara Trump Acclamation

Current Republican National Committee members

A collapsible list of the voting members of the Republican National Committee follows, as of March 2024. [47] The state chair, national committeeman and national committeewoman each receive one vote at RNC meetings and vote for RNC Chairmanship.

StateChairpersonCommitteemanCommitteewoman
Alabama John Wahl Paul ReynoldsVicki Drummond
Alaska Ann S. Brown Craig Campbell Cynthia Henry
American Samoa Will SwordFrank Barron Amata Radewagen
Arizona Gina SwobodaTyler Bowyer Lori Klein Corbin
Arkansas Joseph WoodJonathan BarnettMindy McAlindon
California Jessica Patterson Shawn Steel Harmeet Dhillon
Colorado Dave Williams Randy CorporonVera Ortegon
Connecticut Ben Proto John H. Frey Leora Levy
Delaware Julianne MurrayHank McCannMary McCrossan
District of Columbia Patrick Mara José CunninghamAshley MacLeay
Florida Evan Power Peter FeamanKathleen King
Georgia Josh McKoon Jason ThompsonGinger Howard
Guam Juan Carlos Benitez Eddie Baza Calvo Shelly Gibson
Hawaii Tamara McKay  [ d ] Gene Ward Laura Nakanelua
Idaho Dorothy Moon Bryan SmithCindy Siddoway
Illinois Don Tracy Richard PorterDemetra DeMonte
Indiana VacantJohn HammondAnne Hathaway
Iowa Jeff Kaufmann Steve SchefflerTamara Scott
Kansas Mike Brown Mark KahrsKim Borchers
Kentucky Robert BenvenutiJohn McCarthyKC Crosbie
Louisiana Louis GurvichRoger Villere Lenar Whitney
Maine Joel Stetkis Joshua Tardy Ellie Espling
Maryland Nicole Harris David Bossie Nicolee Ambrose
Massachusetts Amy CarnevaleRon KaufmanJanet Fogarty
Michigan VacantRobert SteeleKathy Berden
Minnesota David Hann Alex PlechashBarb Sutter
Mississippi Frank BordeauxHenry BarbourJeanne C. Luckey
Missouri Nick MyersGordon KinneCarrie Almond
Montana Don Kaltschmidt Art Wittich Debra Lamm
Nebraska Eric UnderwoodJ.L. SprayFanchon Blythe
Nevada Michael McDonaldJames DeGraffenreidSigal Chattah
New Hampshire Chris Ager Bill O'Brien Juliana Bergeron
New Jersey Bob Hugin Bill Palatucci Virginia Haines
New Mexico Steve Pearce Jim Townsend Tina Dziuk
New York Ed Cox Joseph G. Cairo Jr.Jennifer Rich
North Carolina Susan Mills (acting)Ed BroyhillKyshia Brassington
North Dakota Sandra SanfordShane GoettleLori Hinz
Northern Mariana Islands Diego BenaventeEdward Deleon GuerreroIrene Holl
Ohio Alex Triantafilou Jim Dicke Jo Ann Davidson
Oklahoma Nathan Dahm Steve Curry Pam Pollard
Oregon Justin Hwang Solomon Yue Jr. Tracy Honl
Pennsylvania Lawrence TabasAndy Reilly Christine Jack Toretti
Puerto Rico Angel Cintrón Luis Fortuño Zoraida "Zori" Fonalledas
Rhode Island Joe PowersSteve FriasSue Cienki
South Carolina Drew McKissick Glenn McCallCindy Costa
South Dakota John Wiik Ried Holien Sandye Kading
Tennessee Scott GoldenOscar BrockBeth Campbell
Texas Matt Rinaldi Robin ArmstrongToni Anne Dashiell
US Virgin Islands Gordon AckleyJevon WilliamsAntionette Gumbs-Hecht
Utah Robert AxsonBrad BonhamAnne-Marie Lampropoulos
Vermont Paul DameJay ShepardSuzanne Butterfield
Virginia Rich Anderson Morton Blackwell Patti Lyman
Washington Jim Walsh Jeff KentMarlene Pfiefer
West Virginia Matt HerridgeLarry PackBeth Bloch
Wisconsin Brian SchimmingTom SchreibelMaripat Krueger
Wyoming Frank EathorneCorey SteinmetzNina Webber

Para Bellum Labs

In February 2014, during the chairmanship of Reince Priebus, the RNC launched an in-house technology incubator called Para Bellum Labs. [48] This new unit of the RNC was first headed by Azarias Reda, an engineer with a PhD in computer science from the University of Michigan. The effort is designed to help the party and its candidates bridge the technology gap. Para Bellum, translated from Latin, means "prepare for war." [49]

Federal "pay-to-play" investigation

In September 2019, McDaniel emailed Doug Manchester, whose nomination to become Ambassador to the Bahamas was stalled in the Senate, asking for $500,000 in donations to the Republican Party. Manchester responded, noting that his wife had given $100,000 and that his family would "respond" once he was confirmed by the Republican-led Senate to the ambassadorship. Manchester copied the email to aides of two U.S. senators whose support he needed to win confirmation. CBS News described McDaniel's action as a "possible pay-for-play scheme" for the ambassadorship. [50] [51] The San Diego Union-Tribune reported in May 2021 that a federal grand jury had issued a subpoena in a criminal investigation into Manchester's nomination, apparently focused on the RNC, McDaniel and RNC co-chair Tommy Hicks, "and possibly members of Congress". TheUnion-Tribune reported the investigation began in 2020. [52]

See also

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Further reading