Trump endorses Whatley to succeed Ronna McDaniel as RNC chair and Lara Trump as co-chair

Former President Donald Trump has endorsed North Carolina Republican Party chairman Michael Whatley to succeed Ronna McDaniel as Republican National Committee chair.

Alongside endorsing Whatley, Trump said in a statement that he will also throw his support behind Lara Trump, his daughter-in-law, for the role of co-chairwoman at the RNC.

Trump’s endorsement solidifies his effort to bring about a leadership change and exert control over the committee. As part of the plan, Chris LaCivita, Trump’s co-campaign manager, has been tapped to serve as the RNC chief operating officer but will continue in his current role.

“For these reasons, I think my friend Michael Whatley should be the RNC’s next leader. Michael has been with me from the beginning, has done a great job in his home state of North Carolina, and is committed to election integrity, which we must have to keep fraud out of our election so it can’t be stolen,” Trump said in a statement.

“My very talented daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, has agreed to run as the RNC Co-Chair. Lara is an extremely talented communicator and is dedicated to all that MAGA stands for. She has told me she wants to accept this challenge and would be GREAT!” he also said.

This is a developing story and will be updated.