Susie Wiles
Personal details
Born
Susan Summerall

(1957-05-14) May 14, 1957 (age 66)
New Jersey, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseLenny Wiles (divorced 2017)
RelativesPat Summerall (father)
EducationUniversity of Maryland, College Park (BA)

Susan Summerall Wiles[1] (born May 14, 1957)[2] is an American political consultant who currently serves as a senior advisor on the Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign.[3] Described as "the most powerful Republican you don't know" by The Hill, Wiles was credited with helping to secure Donald Trump's victories in Florida in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.[4]

Early life

Born and raised in New Jersey, Susan Summerall was one of the three children of Pat Summerall, who played for the National Football League (NFL) and later became a sportscaster.[5][6] She graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park.[2]

Career

Pre-2016 political endeavours

In 1979, Wiles was hired as an assistant for Representative Jack Kemp, one of Summerall's teammates on the New York Giants. In 1980, she joined Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign as a campaign scheduler.[5]

In the 1990s, Wiles served as a chief of staff to John Delaney, who was then serving as mayor of Jacksonville. Wiles also worked for U.S. Representative Tillie Fowler.[6]

From 2004 to 2009, she advised mayor of Jacksonville John Peyton. In the 2010 Florida gubernatorial election, Wiles was credited with helping elect businessman Rick Scott. Considered an "outsider" at the time, Scott had previously had few connections with the Florida Republican Party.[7]

In January 2011, Wiles was hired as campaign manager for former Governor of Utah Jon Huntsman Jr.'s 2012 presidential campaign. While on the Huntsman campaign, she and former Jacksonville Jaguars player Tony Boselli launched a Ponte Vedra Beach-based consulting firm. Wiles left the campaign in July 2011.[8]

Wiles also ran Tallahassee, Florida-based lobbying firm Ballard Partners for close to a decade,[9] but left in September 2019, citing "a nagging health issue".[10]

Work for Donald Trump

In the 2016 presidential election, Wiles ran the Trump campaign's operations in Florida.[11] During the 2018 Florida gubernatorial election, Wiles was reportedly deputized by Trump to help Republican Ron DeSantis's campaign for Governor.[4] In his victory speech, DeSantis described Wiles as the "best in the business".[12] However, "rising tensions between the duo" led to her dismissal as a top advisor to DeSantis in 2019.[5] DeSantis also got Trump to fire Wiles despite her playing a key role in Trump’s 2016 campaign.[13]

In March 2021, Wiles was chosen to serve as CEO of Trump's Save America PAC. In April 2021, Politico described Wiles as the "new honcho atop Trumpworld", noting that she would wield authority over former 2020 campaign manager Bill Stepien and key aide Justin R. Clark.[14]

In August 2022, she was described as effectively Trump's "chief of staff" in the run-up to the 2022 midterm election and his 2024 presidential campaign announcement.[4] Alongside individuals such as businessman Peter Thiel, Wiles pushed Trump to endorse Blake Masters in the 2022 Senate election in Arizona.[15]

Wiles currently serves as a senior advisor on Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.[3] Alongside fellow advisors Brian Jack and Chris LaCivita, Wiles has been described as one of the "top campaign aides" in Trump's inner circle.[16][17]

In the 2023 federal indictment of Trump for mishandling classified documents, a person was mentioned but not named labeled "PAC Representative," who Trump is alleged to have shown a classified map concerning a military operation.[18] According to ABC News, sources have said that the person is Susie Wiles.[18][19]

Personal life

Susie Wiles was married to Lanny Wiles, a fellow Republican political operative, with whom she moved to Jacksonville in 1985.[6] The couple divorced in 2017.[5]

Following Trump's inauguration, her daughter Caroline Wiles was hired by the White House as deputy assistant to the president and director of scheduling.[20] The Washington Post noted that Caroline Wiles had an "unusual background for a senior White House official", noting that her sole educational qualification was an incomplete degree from Flagler College.

A further investigation revealed that the younger Wiles had legal issues stemming from her driving while intoxicated in both 2005 and 2007.[21] Caroline Wiles ultimately left the White House in February 2017 after failing a background check by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.[11]

References

  1. ^ "Susie Wiles". City of Jacksonville, Florida. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Susie Wiles". LegiStorm. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Olivia Nuzzi (December 23, 2022). "Donald Trump 2024: His Final Presidential Campaign". New York Magazine. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c Adams, Myra (August 11, 2022). "The most powerful Republican you don't know". The Hill. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d Orr, Gabby; Contorno, Steve (August 9, 2022). "She helped Trump win Florida twice. Now she could lead his expected 2024 campaign". CNN. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Smith, Adam C. (October 23, 2016). "Florida campaign manager Susie Wiles says the Donald Trump she knows is not the one critics rip". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  7. ^ Larrabee, Brandon (November 6, 2010). "Susie Wiles: 'The insider' who backed 'the outsider' Rick Scott". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  8. ^ Dixon, Matt (July 22, 2011). "Jacksonville's Susie Wiles resigns as campaign manager for GOP presidential candidate". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  9. ^ Filkins, Dexter (June 27, 2022). "Can Ron DeSantis Displace Donald Trump as the G.O.P.'s Combatant-in-Chief?". The New Yorker. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  10. ^ Schorch, Peter (September 17, 2019). "Citing health issue, Susie Wiles leaves Ballard Partners". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Daughter of political consultant Susie Wiles resigns from White House post". The Florida Times-Union. February 16, 2017. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  12. ^ Flegenheimer, Matt; Haberman, Maggie; Bender, Michael C. (April 18, 2023). "DeSantis Tried to Bury Her. Now She's Helping Trump Try to Bury Him". The New York Times.
  13. ^ Isenstadt, Alex. "Trump campaign cuts ties with top adviser in Florida". Politico.
  14. ^ Palmeri, Tara; Daniels, Eugene; Lizza, Ryan (April 1, 2021). "POLITICO Playbook: There's a new honcho atop Trumpworld". POLITICO. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  15. ^ Palmeri, Tara (January 21, 2022). "POLITICO Playbook: Suspicious Trump weighs dual endorsements". POLITICO. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  16. ^ Lowell, Hugo (January 13, 2023). "Trump to ramp up efforts to secure 2024 Republican nomination after slow start". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  17. ^ Stanage, Niall (December 3, 2022). "The Memo: Trump's 2024 campaign stumbles out of the gate". The Hill. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  18. ^ a b "Who is Susie Wiles, a key Florida power player and Trump advisor tied to indictment?". The Florida Times-Union.
  19. ^ "Top Trump campaign aide identified as key individual in classified docs indictment: Sources". ABC News.
  20. ^ Palmeri, Tara (February 16, 2017). "White House dismisses 6 over failed background checks". POLITICO. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  21. ^ Boburg, Shawn; O'Harrow Jr., Robert (March 30, 2018). "Office that vets Trump appointees plagued by inexperience". Washington Post. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
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