Trump Names Susan Wiles as White House Chief of Staff

President-elect Donald Trump greets his campaign manager Susie Wiles (L) during an election night event at the West Palm Beach Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Nov. 6, 2024. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

President-elect Donald Trump has announced that Susan Wiles, his 2024 presidential campaign manager, will serve as White House chief of staff in the Trump administration.

“Susie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history, and was an integral part of both my 2016 and 2020 successful campaigns,” Trump said in a Nov. 7 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.”

Wiles, daughter of the late NFL broadcaster Pat Summerall and a veteran Florida political strategist, is one of Trump’s most enduring advisers. After playing a key role in securing Florida for Trump in 2020, she effectively acted as his chief of staff during his post-presidency and led his campaign throughout the entire 2024 race for the White House.

On election night, Trump acknowledged Wiles in his victory speech, though she chose not to address the crowd at the Palm Beach Convention Center, instead passing the microphone to co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita. Several allies of the president-elect have publicly backed Wiles for a key role in the upcoming Trump administration.

“Susie Wiles ran Trump’s best campaign of the three, and it wasn’t particularly close,” Turning Point USA CEO Charlie Kirk wrote in a post on X. “She’s disciplined, she’s smart, and she doesn’t seek the limelight. She would make an incredible Chief of Staff. The president, and America, would be well served with Susie in that key role.”

Mark Miller, former chief of staff for South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, said in a post on X that Trump’s supporters “should know [Wiles] was there working behind the scenes when basically no one else was supporting him in late ‘22. What she has done is objectively remarkable.”

In announcing Wiles for the position, Trump described her as “tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected.”

“Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again,” Trump said.

Before Trump’s announcement on Nov. 7, Wiles said on social media platform X—in response to conservative commentator Benny Johnson’s call for her to serve as White House chief of staff—that “I’m ready to serve the great American people in whatever capacity I’m called upon to do so!”