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    • Who is Susie Wiles? Political advisor as Trump’s chief of staff
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    Who is Susie Wiles? Political advisor as Trump’s chief of staff

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    The Florida political consultant has helped other prominent members of the Florida GOP, most notably Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Rick Scott.

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    On Thursday, President-elect Donald Trump announced that campaign senior adviser Susie Wiles will become his White House chief of staff.

    In a statement obtained by USA TODAY, Trump expressed gratitude to Wiles following his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris on Election Day.

    “Susie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history, and was an integral part of both my successful 2016 and 2020 campaigns,” Trump said in the statement. “Susie is tough, smart, innovative and universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again.”

    As Trump’s de facto campaign manager, Wiles will make history by becoming the first woman to hold the title of White House chief of staff.

    The 66-year-old political consultant from Florida is a somewhat mysterious figure, rarely seen at the forefront of the campaign or making himself heard in public.

    “She hates the spotlight,” John Delaney told USA TODAY earlier this year. Delaney is a longtime friend and employed Wiles when he was the Republican mayor of Jacksonville, Florida.

    Ahead of her high-profile position in the Trump administration, here’s what you need to know about Wiles.

    Who is Susie Wiles?

    Wiles has been described as a major reason for Trump’s political comeback to the White House. In 2018, she helped lead another Republican victory when she guided Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to his first term in 2018.

    With Wiles on board for the final month of the campaign, DeSantis narrowly secured the largest victory of any governor in Florida history.

    DeSantis pressured Trump to fire Wiles from his 2020 campaign in Florida, which he did. This came after DeSantis blamed Wiles for leaking a now controversial fundraising memo, which detailed the charging of lobbyists to play golf with the governor, among other things.

    A famous upbringing and experience in politics

    Wiles is the daughter of longtime football broadcaster Pat Summerall, who worked with football royalty such as John Madden.

    “Think about this: Her father was between John Madden and Howard Cosell, two of the biggest personalities, pain in the a–, right?” a Trump campaign official told USA TODAY earlier this year. “Really hard, and he was the calming center. And it is genetically determined. She has.’

    Her early career in politics included working for New York Representative Jack Kemp and in both the Reagan campaign and in government. She made a name for herself in Florida in 1995, helping Delaney become Jacksonville’s first Republican mayor since the Reconstruction era.

    “She’s a Republican, but not ultra-conservative at all,” Delaney said in an interview with USA TODAY earlier this year. ‘Actually, you would be more affected by moderation than anything else. … She would lag behind on the environment, and on gay rights.”

    Wiles helped with several Republican campaigns in Florida

    Trump and DeSantis are not the only two high-profile Florida Republicans that Wiles has successfully helped. In 2010, Wiles helped lead the campaign of Sen. Rick Scott, who won re-election on Tuesday.

    By that election, Scott was an unknown entity in Florida politics, but with Wiles’ help he was able to capitalize on the tea party wave of that year’s midterm elections. Riding a wave of right-wing populism, he defeated his Republican opponent in the primaries and narrowly won the general election.

    “Most Republicans were told that if they worked on my campaign in the primaries, they would never work in Republican politics, so I will be forever grateful that someone with Susie’s reputation came to work for me,” said Scott, adding that Wiles “is very smart. she’s a hard worker, she’s a team player, I think she gives really good advice.”

    Contributing: David Jackson and Zac Anderson, USA TODAY

    Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him at X @fern_cerv_.

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