The Republican National Committee easily reelected Michael Whatley as chairman, following through on President-elect Donald Trump’s request for him to stay on.
Whatley successfully steered the RNC through the 2024 cycle, helping Trump triumphantly return back to the White House after vanquishing Vice President Kamala Harris.
KC Crosbie, a Kentucky GOP activist who was previously the RNC’s treasurer, was elected as Whatley’s co-chairwoman, replacing Lara Trump.
Neither faced competition. Members gave Whatley a standing ovation after he was unanimously reelected.
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“I am honored by the trust you have placed in me to serve as your Chairman. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you,” Whatley told the crowd at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington.
The chairman called the president-elect’s victory “the greatest political comeback in American history,” boasting about him winning all seven battlegrounds and the RNC’s election integrity programs across the nation.
Now, as the RNC holds its winter meeting, members and allies are in a triumphant mood just three days before Inauguration Day.
“I have to tell you, this is the most vibrant meeting I’ve attended in the last six years. Like this is unbelievable. And they’re and they’re working. Everybody’s ready to work,” said Patrick Casale, a staff member of the Nevada GOP who attended the meeting.
The president-elect’s return to power is aided by the added boost of the GOP controlling both chambers of Congress, and he will have at least two years to implement his vision for the nation before the 2026 midterm elections.
Over the weekend, Republicans will fly to the nation’s capital to attend the inauguration and the additional events or inaugural balls.
Whatley’s original co-chairwoman, Lara Trump, the president-elect’s daughter-in-law, announced she was stepping down from the position last month and was rumored as a candidate to be appointed to the Senate seat vacated by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state, but ultimately decided she didn’t want the position.
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Whatley and Lara Trump were elected as RNC chairman and co-chairwoman in March 2024 replacing former Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and former co-leader Drew McKissick.
McDaniel announced her resignation after the South Carolina GOP primary in February 2024. She had faced criticism as the RNC struggled to raise money compared to the Democratic National Committee.
“Michael and I stood before you guys nine months ago when you elected us into these positions, and we made some promises to you,” Lara Trump said as she spoke to the group. “We said that we would be good stewards of the money, that we would raise money like we have never raised before at the RNC, that we would protect the vote, that we would get out the vote, that we would have an incredible convention. And I hope you guys are happy with the job that we have done.”
She also tapped into the jubilant mood of the meeting, telling the group, “We are going to celebrate on Monday and then Tuesday, I’m going to get back to work because we’ve got some more elections to win.”
Florida lawmaker Joe Gruters succeeded Crosbie as treasurer, and Vicki Drummond was reelected as secretary.
Whatley, meanwhile, offered at least one cautionary moment at the meeting, warning that the GOP must defend the House and Senate during the 2026 midterm elections or it could render the president-elect’s agenda ineffective.
“Now, as we look ahead to a new chapter in American history, we have to ask ourselves one simple question. Do we want two years of making America great again or do we want four?” Whatley asked the crowd.
The crowd yelled back, “Four!”