President-elect Trump names Susie Wiles as chief of staff
- Wiles is widely credited by Trump aides and allies for running what they consider his most disciplined and well-executed campaign.
- The longtime Florida-based Republican strategist is the first woman ever to hold the influential role.
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump has named Susie Wiles, the manager of his victorious campaign, as his White House chief of staff, the first woman to ever hold the influential role.
Wiles is widely credited by Trump aides and allies for running what they consider his most disciplined and well-executed campaign, and she was seen as the leading contender for the position. She largely avoided the spotlight, refusing to take the mic to speak as Trump celebrated his victory early Wednesday morning.
Wiles’ hire is Trump’s first major decision as president-elect and one that could be a defining test of his incoming administration, as he must quickly build the team that will help run the massive federal government. Wiles doesn’t bring much federal government experience, but she has a close relationship with the president-elect.
Despite Trump’s often erratic behavior during the 2024 campaign, some believe Wiles did a better job than others had previously in reining in Trump’s worst impulses — not by chiding him, but by showing him that he was better off when he followed her advice than when he flouted it.
“Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again,” Trump said in a statement. “It is a well deserved honor to have Susie as the first-ever female Chief of Staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will make our country proud.”
Trump went through four chiefs of staff — including one who served in an acting capacity for a year — during his first administration, part of record-setting personnel churn.
Newsom’s preemptive strike signals the return of the hostile relationship between Democratic-controlled California and the Trump administration.
Successful chiefs of staff serve as the president’s confidant, help execute a president’s agenda and balance competing political and policy priorities. They also tend to serve as a gatekeeper, helping determine whom the president spends his time with and whom he speaks to — an effort Trump chafed under inside the White House.
The chief of staff is “absolutely critical to an effective White House,” said Chris Whipple, whose book “The Gatekeepers” details how the role has shaped and defined the presidency. “At the end of the day the most important thing is telling the president what he doesn’t want to hear.”
Wiles is a longtime Florida-based Republican strategist who ran Trump’s campaign in the state in 2016 and 2020. Before that, she ran Rick Scott’s 2010 campaign for Florida governor and briefly served as the manager of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman’s 2012 presidential campaign.
Wiles was the one who was tasked with having the toughest discussions with Trump and on every pivotal conversation. She worked well with his family and developed relationships with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Elon Musk that put her in position as a key conduit for Trump’s budding alliances with those men.
“She can manage really any ego that comes her way,” said Chris LaCivita, who along with Wiles served as a co-manager of the campaign. “And she doesn’t do it by any other way other than just being very straightforward and on top of the details.”
Wiles was seen by Trump aides as someone who could guide his moods and impulses without necessarily restraining him. Trump often referenced Wiles on the campaign trail, publicly praising her leadership of what he said he was often told was his “best-run campaign.”
At a rally in Pennsylvania where Trump made one of his last appearances before the election, he launched into a profane and conspiracy-laden speech. Wiles was standing offstage and appeared to glare at him.
Later, at a rally in Pittsburgh, Trump seemed to acknowledge his advisor’s efforts to keep him on message. After complaining that men aren’t allowed to call a woman “beautiful” any longer, he asked if he could strike that word from the record. “I’m allowed to do that, aren’t I, Susan Wiles?”
Miller, Price and Colvin write for the Associated Press.
Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter
Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond. In your inbox three times per week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
