Michael Whatley (born 1968 or 1969) is an American politician and lawyer who has served as chairman of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...

(RNC) since March 2024. Before this, he was chair of the

North Carolina Republican Party The North Carolina Republican Party (NCGOP) is the affiliate of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party in North Carolina. Michael Whatley was the chair from 2019 until his election as national chair in March 2024. It is currentl ...

for five years, the last year of which he also served as the RNC's

general counsel A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department. In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...

Early life and education

Whatley is from

Watauga County, North Carolina Watauga County ( )
from the North Carolina Collection's website at the University of North Carol ...

. He graduated from the

University of North Carolina at Charlotte The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte, or simply Charlotte) is a public research university in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. UNC Charlotte offers 24 doctoral, 66 master's, and 79 bachelor's degree programs thr ...

with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in history and from

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University (WFU) is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The R ...

with a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in religion. In 1997, he earned a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree and a master's degree in theology from the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. Whatley began working in Republican Party politics when he volunteered on the 1984 reelection campaign of

U.S. senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

Jesse Helms Jesse Alexander Helms Jr. (October 18, 1921 – July 4, 2008) was an American politician. A leader in the Conservatism in the United States, conservative movement, he served as a senator from North Carolina from 1973 to 2003. As chairman of the ...

while he was a sophomore at Watauga High School.

Career

In 2000, Whatley was a member of

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

's team pursuing the

Florida recount The 2000 United States presidential election recount in Florida was a period of vote recounting in Florida that occurred during the weeks after Election Day in the 2000 United States presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. Th ...

. During Bush's presidency, Whatley served in the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and energy production, the research and development of nuclear power, the military's nuclear w ...

as deputy assistant secretary.Washington lawyer Dole's chief of staff
''The News and Observer''. January 15, 2004. Retrieved August 9, 2024. In 2004, he became

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

for U.S. Senator

Elizabeth Dole Mary Elizabeth Alexander Dole (née Hanford; born July 29, 1936)Mary Ella Cathey Hanford, "Asbury and Hanford Families: Newly Discovered Genealogical Information" ''The Historical Trail'' 33 (1996), pp. 44–45, 49. is an American attorney, auth ...

, replacing Frank Hill. In 2007, Whatley became a partner at lobbying firm HBW Resources, and in 2008 he became executive vice president for the Consumer Energy Alliance; he held the position until 2019.Morrill, Jim; Pogarcic, Anna (June 10, 2019)
NC's new GOP chair Whatley calls for a 'reset'
''

The Charlotte Observer ''The Charlotte Observer'' is an American newspaper serving Charlotte, North Carolina, and its metro area. The Observer was founded in 1886. it has the second-largest circulation of any newspaper in the Carolinas. It is owned by Chatham Asset ...

''. p.2. Retrieved August 9, 2024. In 2016, Whatley helped Republican presidential nominee

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

campaign and organize rallies in North Carolina. In June 2019, the

selected Whatley to succeed Robin Hayes as their chair. Whatley was closely involved in President

's efforts to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election, including participating in the December 2020 phone call on which Trump urged Georgia Secretary of State

Brad Raffensperger Bradford Jay Raffensperger (born May 18, 1955) is an American businessman, civil engineer, and politician serving as the Georgia Secretary of State, secretary of state of Georgia since 2019. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

to "find" the votes he needed to win the state. Following the United States Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, Whatley refused to blame Trump, saying that only those who participated in the riots bear responsibility. In February 2021, Whatley said, "We certainly saw evidence of voting irregularities, of election counting irregularities in a number of places around the country", and that the reason Trump won North Carolina was his state party's vigilance against Democrats' attempts to cheat. Also in February 2021, the state party voted unanimously to

censure A censure is an expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism. In parliamentary procedure, it is a debatable main motion that could be adopted by a majority vote. Among the forms that it can take are a stern rebuke by a legislature, a sp ...

Senator

Richard Burr Richard Mauze Burr (born November 30, 1955) is an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from North Carolina from 2005 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Burr was previously a member of the United Stat ...

for voting to convict President Trump during his second impeachment. The

appointed Whatley as its general counsel in February 2023. In February 2024, Donald Trump endorsed Whatley to replace

Ronna McDaniel Ronna Romney McDaniel ( Romney; born March 20, 1973) is an American political strategist who served as chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) from 2017 until her resignation in 2024. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Rep ...

as chair of the RNC. In March 2024, Whatley was elected as the new chair of the RNC, along with

Lara Trump Lara Lea Trump ( Yunaska; born October 12, 1982) is an American political figure who is the former co-chair of the Republican National Committee. She is married to Eric Trump, the third child of U.S. President Donald Trump. She was the producer ...

as his co-chair. Per the North Carolina party's 2022 plan of organization, its vice chair (Susan Mills) served as state chair until a successor was elected. In January 2025, Whatley was reelected as chair of the RNC.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Whatley, Michael 1960s births 21st-century American lawyers Living people North Carolina Republicans Notre Dame Law School alumni People from Gastonia, North Carolina People from Watauga County, North Carolina Political chiefs of staff Republican National Committee chairs State political party chairs of North Carolina University of North Carolina at Charlotte alumni Wake Forest University alumni