Newly-reelected Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel appears to be laying down the law ahead of what is expected to be a contentious GOP presidential nomination process over the coming year.
Republican presidential candidates will be required to sign a formal declaration of their commitment to the party’s eventual nominee if they wish to take part in primary debates, McDaniel announced last week. This pledge emphasizes the need for party unity and underscores the importance of ensuring that the eventual GOP nominee has a strong base of support within the party. The RNC has taken this step to ensure that Republicans are not divided and that the party is unified in its effort to win the next presidential election, she noted.
During her appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, McDaniel was asked by Dana Bash regarding the necessity for Republican presidential candidates to sign the pledge.
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“Will candidates be required to sign a pledge saying they will support whoever becomes the nominee in order to get on that debate stage?” Bash asked.
“We haven’t put the criteria out but I expect a pledge will be part of it. It was part of 2016, I think it’s kind of a no-brainer, right? If you’re going to be on the Republican National Committee Debate stage, asking voters to support you, you should say ‘I’m going to support the voters and who they choose as the nominee.’ As RNC Chair, if I said I wouldn’t support the Republican nominee, I would be removed from office,” McDaniel said.
“Anybody getting on the Republican National Committee debate stage should be able to say ‘I will support the will of the voters and the eventual nominee of our party,’” she continued.
The Republican presidential nomination race has already begun, with Donald Trump, former president of the United States, Nikki Haley, former Republican governor of South Carolina, and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, all actively campaigning for the position. It is widely anticipated that in the upcoming months, possible contenders like the Republican Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, and the Republican Senator from South Carolina, Tim Scott, will enter the presidential race.
McDaniel was in a dogfight earlier this year to keep her post as dissatisfaction with her and other Republican leaders grew following a dismal party showing during the midterms.
Just the News reported that conservative lawyer Harmeet Dhillon has picked up some key support as she moves to unseat McDaniel, noting that, over the weekend, RNC member Morton Blackwell, founder of the conservative training group The Leadership Institute, has thrown his support behind her.
But in the end, McDaniel pulled in enough votes to retain her post, pledging to learn from the party’s showing last fall and move it forward.
