Michael Whatley, former United States President Donald Trump's recommended person to replace Republican National Committee (RNC) Chair Ronna McDaniel, is facing skepticism from some GOP members.
In the former president's efforts to push Whatley as the next leader of the RNC, he zeroed in on the North Carolina GOP chairman's dedication to "election integrity." This baselessly suggested that he would ensure the 2024 race "can't be stolen."
Some of the Republican businessman's most ardent supporters in Whatley's home state would, without a doubt, want to have a discussion. The latter has been accused by some GOP members of essentially manufacturing his win as state primary chairman last year.
This was following a chaotic vote which resulted in a legal challenge that offered evidence that some of the ballots were improperly cast. While Whatley and his allies acknowledged that there were technical problems that made voting with the party's mobile app difficult, they denied that any irregularities changed the outcome of the race, as per the Associated Press.
In a statement, Whatley's challenger, John Kane Jr., who described himself as "unquestionably" the true "MAGA candidate" in the contest, said that he can only conclude two possibilities. The first is that Trump's endorsed candidate needed to cheat to win. The second is that Whatley is completely incompetent.
The controversy that surrounds Whatley's election to the top political post in North Carolina for the Republican Party is one of several emerging signals that suggest further challenges. The former president is trying to wrest control of the RNC by having his preferred candidate oust McDaniel.
However, in doing so, he has elevated an individual with a relatively scant national profile and a gilded resume that includes links to establishment figures who are largely reviled by the hardline activists who are among the most vocal in support of Trump.
In a statement on Monday, Trump touted Whatley as someone who has been with him since the beginning, has done a great job in North Carolina, and is committed to curbing election fraud. Whatley has repeatedly echoed the former president's claims that the 2020 election was stolen, according to the News Observer.
Donald Trump's RNC Chair Endorsement
In November 2020, he said that "massive fraud" took place in Democratic cities and claimed before the election that Republican poll observers were being prevented from entering voting areas.
At the time, reports showed that Whatley's support of Trump's false claims of voter fraud made him a top candidate for the former president. One of their sources even described Whatley as a "stop the steal guy."
Democratic National Committee (DNC) Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd said that Trump's endorsement of Whatley made it clear that the GOP is "the home for insurrectionists and extreme MAGA fanatics."
Additionally, GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley also criticized Trump's decision to endorse Whatley to replace McDaniel as the RNC chair. In an interview, she said that Trump's decision was based on his own preference, adding that he was also looking to endorse his daughter-in-law Lara Trump as the RNC co-chair, said The Hill.
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