Jacob Ogles
The Republican National Committee (RNC) has a new man leading them into the Midterms and beyond.
At a Summer meeting in Atlanta, RNC members unanimously elected Joe Gruters, a Sarasota Republican, as Chair. Gruters enjoyed President Donald Trump’s endorsement and ran unopposed.
At the meeting, Gruters handed out personalized red jackets to RNC members that he had customized ahead of the vote. In a speech to members, he voiced optimism about the 2026 Midterms while promising to advance Trump’s agenda.
“What an incredible honor,” Gruters said after his election, adding that the members would determine the success of the party. “Your leadership will help us build the strongest, most energized Republican National Committee in history.”
The job required Gruters to step down from his post as RNC Treasurer, a job he won election to in January. RNC members on Friday also elected New York National Committeewoman Jennifer Rich to replace Gruters as Treasurer.
The shake-up in leadership at the RNC follows news that Michael Whatley, who stepped down Friday as RNC Chair, was running for U.S. Senate in North Carolina. Seeking federal office would complicate the ability to raise money for the national party, so he stepped aside.
Whatley at the Atlanta meeting gave a goodbye address to the committee before the election was held.
“We had front-row seats to the greatest political comeback in American history as President Trump was re-elected, winning the popular vote, an electoral college landslide and a mandate to ‘Make America Great Again.’”
Whatley also praised Gruters as a worthy successor.
“As the Chair of the Republican Party from Florida, Joe was successful in getting out the vote and protecting the ballot. He led the transformation of Florida from a purple state to a red state, where they had a deficit of 400,000 voters to a 1.3 million voter (advantage).” he said.
Florida Republican National Committeewoman Kathleen King was among those making nomination speeches ahead of Gruters’ election. She has known Gruters for decades, leading the Manatee County Republican Executive Committee and often working hand-in-hand with Gruters when he led the Republican Party of Sarasota in a neighboring county.
“He’s the right man in the right time to make sure every state replicates the success we’ve had in Florida,” King said.
In what ultimately became Gruters’ first and last financial report as RNC Treasurer, he praised Whatley for leaving the party with $84 million in cash on hand.
“The Democrats have $15 million cash on hand,” Gruters said. “That doesn’t mean that we’re going to be able to rest or to slow down.”
Gruters boasts a long relationship with Trump, endorsing him earlier in the 2016 election cycle even as U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and former Gov. Jeb Bush ran for President the same year. Ultimately, Gruters served as Trump’s Florida campaign Co-Chair alongside Susie Wiles, now Trump’s White House Chief of Staff.
Notably, Gruters also holds a Florida Senate seat, which he intends to keep. But he said that can change, as the RNC Chair position prompts him to travel up to five days a week.
Gruters has said he intends to remain as RNC Chair through the 2028 Presidential Election. But first, he will lead the party into what has historically been a challenging Midterm cycle for the party in control of the White House. While Gruters acknowledged that the party in power has only twice picked up seats in the U.S. House after winning the White House, he predicted this cycle will be the third.
He has also stressed that while he runs the business of the national party, Trump remains the person setting the Republican Party’s agenda nationwide.
“The party supports the President in every way, but the party and the President are focused on protecting the vote,” Gruters told Florida Politics ahead of the vote. “What’s of primary importance is making it as easy as possible to vote, as hard as possible to cheat, and whatever we could do to make sure that happens, we’re in line with that.”
