Last week, President-elect Donald Trump announced that his campaign co-chair Susie Wiles will serve as White House chief of staff, the first woman — Republican or Democrat — to ever hold that position. Trump called her “tough, smart, innovative…, universally admired and respected” and credited her with helping win both the 2024 and 2016 elections.
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Behind the scenes
Wiles is known as a formidable political operative who prefers to work behind the scenes rather than on any stage – or in front of cameras. In line with that, then Trump declared victory in the early hours of last Wednesday morning he invited her to come to the microphones, but she politely declined.
She has managed not only to ingratiate herself, but more importantly, to maintain good standing with Trump, gain his trust while working in a high-profile campaign role and undermine the ambitions, personalities and egos around of Trump managed.
Relationship with campaign staff
Wiles is well-liked by Trump campaign staff, many of whom call her a mentor.
“Susie Wiles is a great advocate for President Trump and a great boss to those who work for her,” said Trump senior adviser Danielle Alvarez. “She knows how to bring people together.”
“For myself and countless others, it is a gift to have Susie Wiles as a mentor and friend,” said Brian Hughes, another senior advisor. “The nation will see that with President Trump in the White House and Susie as COS, the next four years will be America’s best.”
Those who worked for Wiles “will take a bullet for Susie,” said Carlos Trujillo, a campaign adviser who served as U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States. Trujillo said most people don’t see Wiles’ maternal and grandmotherly side. “She always made sure her people were taken care of,” he said. “She is very gentle, but she holds everyone accountable, and that is always done with love and kindness, but never with hate.”
Management style
Staffers say Wiles runs a tight and focused ship. Trump’s 2024 campaign did not have the big, dramatic shakeups or infighting that characterized his previous campaigns. Wiles’ appointment indicates that as president-elect he wants to lead his government in a similar manner.
Wiles’ legacy, Trujillo said, is her ability to cultivate talent. “Susie in politics is the best coach of all time… she will be able to recruit the best talent.”
And while Wiles shuns the spotlight, she made a rare comment about X when businessman Mark Cuban accused Trump of not hanging out with “strong, intelligent women” in an interview on ABC’s “The View.” In answer: Wiles posted for the first time this year: “I was told [Mark Cuban] needs help identifying the strong and intelligent women surrounding Pres. Trump. Well, here we are!”
Background
After Trump won the 2016 election, Wiles, who was the chief Florida strategist for his campaign, was dispatched in late September 2018 to help Ron DeSantis with his 2018 bid to become governor of Florida. At the time, he trailed Democrat Andrew Gillum in several polls.
However, after helping DeSantis win, Wiles was excluded from his inner circle, according to The Atlantic’s Tim Alberta. Wiles told Alberta that working for DeSantis was the “biggest mistake” of her career. She returned to the Trump campaign and managed his campaign in Florida in 2020, and after his loss she led Trump’s Save America PAC.
As Trump’s 2024 co-campaign manager, Wiles, along with Chris LaCivita, devised a plan to recruit, register and turn out Trump’s low-prone voters, Alberta reported. During the primaries, in the reddest parts of the country, they chased people who liked Trump but were not regular voters and in many cases were not even registered to vote. During the general campaign, Wiles and LaCivita raised a volunteer army to take on the legions of canvassers paid from Kamala Harris’ cash-rich coffers.
Wiles is a New Jersey native and the daughter of famed NFL kicker and sportscaster Pat Summerall. Shortly after graduating from the University of Maryland, she worked for Ronald Reagan’s presidential campaign and later went to work in Florida politics. In 2010, she helped Senator Rick Scott win his election against Democrat Bill McCollum, and she also served as a political consultant in Florida.
Caitlin Huey Burns
