WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) — Embattled Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Ronna Romney McDaniel won a fourth term in her current position Friday, getting more than twice as many votes as her top challenger despite widespread discontent with Republican leadership in the wake of the disappointing 2020 midterm elections.
McDaniel won 111 out of the 167 votes, withstanding a challenge by conservative attorney and California Republican Party chair Harmeet Dhillon, who attained 51 votes. MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell received four votes, and former Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York, who had withdrawn from consideration, received one.
Many had called for fresh blood in party leadership after an anticipated “red wave” failed to materialize last year, resulting in Democrats keeping the U.S. Senate and only narrowly losing the House of Representatives despite widespread dissatisfaction with President Joe Biden and his party. It was the third major GOP disappointment during McDaniel’s tenure, following loss of the House in 2018 and of the presidency in 2020.
Many conservative personalities, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, identified Dhillon as the best chance at providing that fresh blood, while former President Donald Trump declined to endorse, praising both women and congratulating McDaniel after her win.
Dhillon, who had advocated drastic changes to the RNC’s fundraising and litigation strategies as well as moving the committee out of Washington, D.C., responded to her loss by expressing hope that the RNC “will be better for the tough conversations that were desperately needed about how to reform the RNC to win elections and earn the trust of our voters, activists, and donors.”
“We heard you, grassroots,” McDaniel said after her victory. “We know. We heard Harmeet. We heard Mike Lindell. But with us united and all of us going together, the Democrats are going to hear us in 2024 when we take back the White House and the Senate.”
Since November, dueling factions of the conservative coalition have emphasized various potential factors for the midterm disappointment, including the GOP establishment withdrawing financial support for certain candidates; Trump redirecting midterm donations to his own organization instead of midterm races and his elevation of questionable candidates in GOP primaries; Democrats themselves funding weaker Republicans in primaries; potential election fraud and Democrats’ effective harvesting of early votes and mail ballots; manipulation of swing voters by Big Tech; establishment Republicans failing to offer a compelling contrast to Democrats over the last two years; and the long-term results of left-wing bias in media and education.