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.jpg) Headquarters (2024) | |
| Founded | June 1856; 169 years ago |
|---|---|
| Location |
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| Coordinates | 38°53′07″N77°00′20″W / 38.88538°N 77.00552°W /38.88538; -77.00552 |
Key people | Chair: Joe Gruters Co-Chair: KC Crosbie[1] Finance Chair: JD Vance[2] Secretary: Vicki Drummond Treasurer: Jennifer Rich |
| Affiliations | Republican Party |
| Website | www |
TheRepublican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of theRepublican 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 andpolitical platform, as well as assisting infundraising and election strategy. It does not have direct authority over elected officials.[4] It is also responsible for organizing and running theRepublican 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]
Similar committees exist in every U.S. state and mostU.S. counties, although in some states party organization is structured bycongressional district, allied campaign organizations being governed by a national committee.Joe Gruters is the current committee chairman.[7]
The Democratic Party's counterpart to the RNC is theDemocratic National Committee.
The1856 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 fromWashington, 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 isGeorge 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 gettingJohn Glenn Beall Jr., theU.S. Senator from Maryland, to pressure his brother,George Beall theU.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. UnderRonna McDaniel's leadership, the RNC ran ads forTrump'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'sFake News Awards, and criticized Trump critics within the Republican Party.[11] Two days after theJanuary 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 andAdam Kinzinger of Illinois, for their participation in theUnited 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]
In May 2024,TheAssociated Press reported that underLara Trump, the RNC had "sought alliances with election deniers, conspiracy theorists andalt-right advocates the party had previously kept at arm's length."[16] It also noted the prevalence of election deniers had increased among top Republican officeholders and RNC officials as part of a largerelection denial movement in the United States.[17]
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 is more focused on campaign and organizational strategy thanpublic policy.
It helps coordinate fundraising and election strategy, as well as organizing and running theRepublican 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.”[18]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion with: is the committee itself the entire organization or is their paid staff and volunteers, what is the internal structure and subcommittees if any, how is the election of committee members and its leadership and other officers structured, what are the relationships to state and county committees. You can help byadding to it.(January 2021) |
Since January 17, 2025,[update] the Republican National Committee has been chaired byMichael Whatley and co-chaired byKC Crosbie.[1][19]
The previous chair of the Republican National Committee wasRonna McDaniel, serving from 2017 to 2024. McDaniel was chair of theMichigan Republican Party from 2015 to 2017.[20]
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 theAmerica First Action PAC andAmerica First Policies, and as national finance co-chairman forDonald J. Trump for President.[20]
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 withNational Federation of Republican Women), GOP Faith, Asian Pacific Americans, Young Leaders, and Veterans & Military Families.[20]
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haley Barbour | 60 | 66 | 90 |
| Spencer Abraham | 47 | 52 | 57 |
| Bo Callaway | 22 | 19 | 18 |
| John Ashcroft | 26 | 20 | Withdrew |
| Craig Berkman | 10 | 8 | Withdrew |
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Nicholson | 23 | 30 | 38 | 65 | 74 | * |
| David Norcross | 41 | 46 | 47 | 50 | 47 | Withdrew |
| Steve Merrill | 42 | 42 | 43 | 46 | 43 | Withdrew |
| John S. Herrington | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | Withdrew | - |
| Tom Pauken | 22 | 24 | 21 | Withdrew | - | |
| Chuck Yob | 17 | 18 | 12 | Withdrew | - | |
| Robert T. Bennett | 15 | Withdrew |
On November 24, 2008, Steele launched his campaign for the RNC chairmanship with the launching of his website.[21] On January 30, 2009, Steele won the chairmanship of the RNC in the sixth round, with 91 votes to Dawson's 77.[22]
Source: CQPolitics,[23] and Poll Pundit.[24]
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Steele | 46 | 48 | 51 | 60 | 79 | 91 |
| Katon Dawson | 28 | 29 | 34 | 62 | 69 | 77 |
| Saul Anuzis | 22 | 24 | 24 | 31 | 20 | Withdrew |
| Ken Blackwell | 20 | 19 | 15 | 15 | Withdrew | - |
| Mike Duncan | 52 | 48 | 44 | 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.[25]
Six people ran for the 2009 RNC Chairmanship: Steele,Ken Blackwell,Mike Duncan,Saul Anuzis,Katon Dawson andChip 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 ofKentucky, with 51 votes to Duncan's 44. Shortly after the announcement of the standings, Duncan dropped out of contention without endorsing a candidate.[26] 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.[27] After the fifth round, Steele held a ten-vote lead over Katon Dawson, with 79 votes, and Saul Anuzis dropped out.[28] After the sixth vote, he won the chairmanship of the RNC over Dawson by a vote of 91 to 77.[29]
Mississippi Governor and former RNC chairHaley 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.[30]
Michael Steele ran for re-election at the 2011 RNC winter meeting.[31] Other candidates wereReince Priebus, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman,Ann Wagner, former Ambassador to Luxembourg,Saul Anuzis, former Republican Party Chairman of Michigan, andMaria Cino, former acting Secretary of Transportation underGeorge 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 byAmericans for Tax Reform took place on January 3 at theNational Press Club.[32][33] 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.
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 | Round 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reince Priebus | 45 | 52 | 54 | 58 | 67 | 80 | 97 |
| Saul Anuzis | 24 | 22 | 21 | 24 | 32 | 37 | 43 |
| Maria Cino | 32 | 30 | 28 | 29 | 40 | 34 | 28 |
| Ann Wagner | 23 | 27 | 32 | 28 | 28 | 17 | Withdrew |
| Michael Steele | 44 | 37 | 33 | 28 | Withdrew |
Priebus won re-election with near unanimity in the party's 2013 meeting inCharlotte, North Carolina.[34] He was re-elected to a third term in 2015, setting him up to become the longest serving head of the party ever.[35]
After winning in November 2016, President-electDonald Trump designated Priebus as hisWhite 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.[36]
Trump then recommendedRonna 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.[37]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.[38] McDaniel was re-elected in to a fourth term in January 2023, easily defeating Lindell and California RNC committeewomanHarmeet Dhillon.[39]
| Candidate | Round 1 |
|---|---|
| Ronna McDaniel | 111 |
| Harmeet Dhillon | 51 |
| Mike Lindell | 4 |
| Lee Zeldin | 1 |
Candidate won majority of votes in the round
On February 6, 2024,The New York Times reported thatMcDaniel intended to resign after theSouth Carolina Republican presidential primary held on February 24, 2024, following dissatisfaction from former presidentDonald Trump, who publicly supportedNorth Carolina Republican Party chairMichael Whatley.[40][41]
McDaniel confirmed these reports when, on February 26, 2024, she andDrew McKissick announced their resignations as chair and co-chair of the RNC effective on March 8, 2024.[42] Later that same day, Michael Whatley, chair of theNorth Carolina Republican Party, announced that he would seek the position of RNC chair.
Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of presidentDonald Trump, also announced on February 28 that she would seek to succeed McKissick as co-chair of the RNC.[43] Both Whatley and Trump gained the endorsement of former President Trump.
Whatley and Trump were both elected via acclamation as chair and co-chair of the Republican National Committee on March 8, 2024.
Whatley was reelected as RNC chair on January 17, 2025, andKC Crosbie, whom Donald Trump endorsed, was elected as co-chair, after Lara Trump chose not to continue in the role.[44]
August 2025 election
On July 24, 2025, afterMichael Whatley announced he would run in the2026 United States Senate election in North Carolina and vacated his position as chair of the RNC,Donald Trump endorsedJoe Gruters to be the next chair of the RNC. Whatley endorsed him as well, and called Gruters "a true conservative fighter". On August 22, 2025,Gruters was unanimously electedChairman of the Republican National Committee. After his election, Gruters told members of theRNC: “Today is not about one person, it is about our mission: The midterms are ahead, where we must expand our majority in the House and Senate and continue electing Republicans nationwide."
A collapsible list of the voting members of the Republican National Committee follows, as of April 10, 2025[update].[45] The state chair, national committeeman and national committeewoman each receive one vote at RNC meetings and vote for RNC chairmanship.
| State | Chairperson | Committeeman | Committeewoman |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | John Wahl | Bill Harris | Vicki Drummond |
| Alaska | Carmela Warfield | Brian Hove | Cynthia Henry |
| American Samoa | Will Sword | Frank Barron | Amata Radewagen |
| Arizona | Gina Swoboda | Jake Hoffman | Liz Harris |
| Arkansas | Joseph Wood | Eddie Arnold | Mindy McAlindon |
| California | Corrin Rankin | Shawn Steel | Connie Conway |
| Colorado | Brita Horn | Randy Corporon | Christy Fidura |
| Connecticut | Ben Proto | John H. Frey | Annalisa Stravato |
| Delaware | Julianne Murray | Hank McCann | Mary McCrossan |
| District of Columbia | Patrick Mara | Tim Costa | Joanne Young |
| Florida | Evan Power | Joe Gruters | Kathleen King |
| Georgia | Josh McKoon | Jason Thompson | Amy Kremer |
| Guam | Shaun Gumataotao | Juan Carlos Benitez | Sam Mabini-Young |
| Hawaii | Tamara McKay | Nolan Chang | Laura Nakanelua |
| Idaho | Dorothy Moon | Bryan Smith | Vicki Keen |
| Illinois | Kathy Salvi | Dean White | Rhonda Belford |
| Indiana | Lana Keesling | Victor Smith | Anne Hathaway |
| Iowa | Jeff Kaufmann | Steve Scheffler | Tamara Scott |
| Kansas | Danedri Herbert | Mark Kahrs | Wendy Bingesser |
| Kentucky | Robert Benvenuti | John McCarthy | KC Crosbie |
| Louisiana | Derek Babcock | Roger Villere | Gena Gore |
| Maine | James Deyermond | David Whitney | Lauren LePage |
| Maryland | Nicole Harris | David Bossie | Nicolee Ambrose |
| Massachusetts | Amy Carnevale | Brad Wyatt | Janet Fogarty |
| Michigan | Jim Runestad | Robert Steele | Hima Kolanagireddy |
| Minnesota | Alex Plechash | AK Kamara | Emily Novtony-Chance |
| Mississippi | Mike Hurst | Frank Bordeaux | Lesley Davis |
| Missouri | Peter Kinder | David Lightner | Maryam Mohammadkhani |
| Montana | Don Kaltschmidt | Tanner Smith | Debbie Churchill |
| Nebraska | Mary Jane Truemper | William Feely | Fanchon Blythe |
| Nevada | Michael McDonald | James DeGraffenreid | Sue Lowden |
| New Hampshire | Jim MacEachern | Bill O'Brien | Mary Jane Beauregard |
| New Jersey | Glenn Paulsen | Bill Palatucci | Janice Fields[46] |
| New Mexico | Amy Barela | Jim Townsend | Tina Dziuk |
| New York | Ed Cox | Joseph G. Cairo Jr. | Jennifer Rich |
| North Carolina | Jason Simmons | Ed Broyhill | Kyshia Brassington |
| North Dakota | Sandra Sanford | Steve Nagel | Lori Hinz |
| Northern Mariana Islands | Ramon Tebuteb | Edward Deleon Guerrero | Irene Holl |
| Ohio | Alex Triantafilou | Jim Dicke | Jane Timken |
| Oklahoma | Charity Linch | Larry Murray | Karen Hardin |
| Oregon | Connie Whelchel | Dan Mason | Tracy Honl |
| Pennsylvania | Greg Rothman | Andy Reilly | Vacant |
| Puerto Rico | Angel Cintrón | Luis Fortuño | Zoraida "Zori" Fonalledas |
| Rhode Island | Joe Powers | Thomas Carroll | Sue Cienki |
| South Carolina | Drew McKissick | Tyson Grinstead | Cindy Costa |
| South Dakota | Jim Eschenbaum | Ried Holien | Heidi Engelhart |
| Tennessee | Scott Golden | Oscar Brock | Beth Campbell |
| Texas | Abraham George | Robin Armstrong | Debbie Georgatos |
| US Virgin Islands | John Yob | Jim Hughes | April Newland |
| Utah | Robert Axson | Brad Bonham | Kim Coleman |
| Vermont | Paul Dame | Josh Bechhoefer | Deb Billado |
| Virginia | Mark Peake | Morton Blackwell | Patti Lyman |
| Washington | Jim Walsh | Mathew Patrick Thomas | Marlene Pfiefer |
| West Virginia | Matt Herridge | Larry Pack | Beth Bloch |
| Wisconsin | Brian Schimming | Terry Dittrich | Pam Travis |
| Wyoming | Frank Eathorne | Corey Steinmetz | Nina Webber |
In February 2014, during the chairmanship ofReince Priebus, the RNC launched an in-house technology incubator called Para Bellum Labs.[47] This new unit of the RNC was first headed by Azarias Reda, an engineer with a PhD in computer science from theUniversity 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."[48]
In September 2019, McDaniel emailedDoug 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.[49][50]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-chairTommy Hicks, "and possibly members of Congress".TheUnion-Tribune reported the investigation began in 2020.[51]
Priebus was re-elected to his second term with near unanimity in 2013 at the party's meeting in Charlotte
Priebus was elected Friday in a resounding vote to serve a third term as chairman of the Republican National Committee, putting him on course to become the longest serving head of the national party in history.
The RNC Tuesday is announcing the formation of Para Bellum Labs, an in-house technology incubator that combines the committee's data-analytics arm with its digital-marketing unit.
the RNC last week unveiled Para Bellum Labs — para bellum is Latin for 'prepare for war' — an initiative designed to help the party and its candidates bridge the technology gap
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