RNC Undergoes Major Overhaul, More Than 60 Staffers Terminated in Wake of Lara Trump’s Co-Chair Election

In a swift move, the Republican National Committee (RNC) has begun a major staff overhaul, terminating more than 60 employees just days after the election of Michael Whatley as chair and Lara Trump as co-chair. Lara, daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump , steps into her role amid accusations of nepotism.

According to two individuals with close ties to both the Donald campaign and the Republican National Committee, Donald’s recently appointed leadership team at the RNC started the process of removing scores of officials on Monday. It is anticipated that around sixty RNC employees who are employed in the political, communications, and data departments will be let go. Five senior staff members are among those being requested to quit, though their identities have not been disclosed. It’s also anticipated that some vendor contracts will be terminated, as per Mediaite .

Sean Cairncross, the RNC’s new chief operating officer, stated that the committee leadership was “in the process of evaluating the organization and staff to ensure the building is aligned” with its mission in a message to some members of the political and data staff. “During this process, certain staff are being asked to resign and reapply for a position on the team.”

The goal of the update is to reduce the RNC’s “bureaucracy,” as one person put it. However, the action also highlights how quickly Donald’s team is taking control of the Republican Party’s operations following the former president’s near-certain victory in last week’s primary. On Monday, the operational authority of the RNC was transferred to Donald’s campaign.

In addition to Donald’s daughter-in-law Lara and Michael Whatley, Chris LaCivita, a senior campaign adviser to Donald, was elected chief of staff of the Republican National Committee on Friday, as per CBS News . Allegations of nepotism have been made in response to Lara’s hiring. Furthermore, when Donald declared that “every penny” raised by the Republican National Committee should go toward reelecting her father-in-law, down-ballot contests be damned, it raised eyebrows last month.

Whatley is taking over for Ronna McDaniel, who left the position last week after holding it for more than seven years. Although Donald and McDaniel had been longtime pals, the former president had recently been dissatisfied with the chairman because he believed she was not doing enough to address concerns connected to “voter integrity” and because she was hosting Republican primary debates, which he declined to take part in.

The RNC’s structure, according to Donald’s advisors, is unduly bureaucratic and bloated, which they believe has led to the party’s financial difficulties. By the end of December, the RNC’s cash was only roughly one-third that of the Democratic National Committee, at $8 million. The Trump campaign is hoping to combine its activities with the RNC under the new arrangement. Crucial divisions like fundraising, data, and communications will essentially function as a single unit.