Trump endorses NC’s Michael Whatley as RNC Co-Chair

On Sunday, former President Donald Trump endorsed NCGOP chairman Michael Whatley to be RNC co-chair. Whatley has his “Complete and Total Endorsement,” according to a Trump email that went out to supporters.

Co-chair is the number two position in the RNC. Thomas Hicks Jr. is the current co-chairman of the RNC. Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the RNC, will likely retain her position, although she does face some competition this year.

Whatley was first elected state party chair in summer 2019. Under his leadership, the 2020 elections were largely successful for the GOP. North Carolinians voted Republican for president, U.S. Senate, lieutenant governor, labor commissioner, and superintendent of public instruction. Republicans also captured all the statewide judicial elections and added seats in the GOP-controlled N.C. General Assembly.

In 2022, North Carolina was one of the few states where Republicans met or exceeded expectations. North Carolinians elected Republican Ted Budd to the open U.S. Senate seat despite 2022 being a cycle where many Republicans running for the senate performed poorly. Republicans regained control of the state Supreme Court, and the state senate gained enough seats for a Republican supermajority, while the state house came within one seat.

Whatley, who lives in Gaston County and is originally from Watauga County, has been the chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party since 2019. He won re-election in June 2021.

After Whatley’s reelection, someone noted that in 20 years of NCGOP conventions he had attended, that 2021 was the first time he had ever seen a chair elected by unanimous consent—a testament to Whatley’s success in uniting the often divided state party.

Whatley’s current term as NCGOP chairman would end this summer.

You can see Trump’s full endorsement below.

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