George Riley to serve as Acting Executive Director of Florida GOP

Veteran Florida GOP staffer George Riley will serve as Acting Executive Director, the party announced Sunday.

Riley will replace Brad Herold, who is leaving the party to work for the U.S. Senate campaign of Congressman Ron DeSantis. Herold’s last day is January 15.

“(Riley’s) experience will be a key asset as we continue to grow our operations to ensure that we deliver Florida’s 29 electoral votes to the Republican presidential nominee,” said RPOF Chairman Blaise Ingoglia.

The longest tenured member of the vaunted RPOF field staff, Riley had been functioning as Director of Party Development, a behind-the-scenes post that involves extensive interaction with the party’s county organizations and officials. Before that, Riley worked on campaigns in Tampa Bay and statewide, and managed field teams in the Tampa Bay and Orlando regions during the 2012 elections.

Matt Dixon of POLITICO Florida first reported Herold’s move to the DeSantis campaign.