Lee Zeldin came up a little short in the race for governor of New York, but he might be getting a new job anyway. His performance as a candidate impressed many people, and now a growing number of fans are saying he should run for chairman of the Republican National Committee.
Current RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel wants to run again. A person needs 168 votes. People close to the matter say McDaniel has 100 people behind her.
After the midterms we just witnessed, it’s understandable that people want to see a change in leadership.
NBC News reports:
Rep. Zeldin taking supporters’ calls about running for RNC chair, longtime adviser saysRep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., who lost a surprisingly close race for governor last week, has spoken with GOP elected officials and party activists who want him to run for the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee, his media consultant said.“He has received calls from around the country,” John Brabender said Sunday. “It’s likely that he will at least explore it. … He’s fielding calls, talking to people, listening to them, but it has not gone beyond that.”RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel has not said whether she will seek re-election at the party’s winter meeting in January, nor has Tommy Hicks, the co-chair. Under the party’s rules, the top two posts must be held by one man and one woman.
While the red wave failed to materialize, Republicans did surprisingly well in New York, and the consensus seems to be that Zeldin deserves most of the credit.
Politico reports:
Zeldin in demand after putting New York Dems on the defensiveRepublican Lee Zeldin’s strong performance last week in the New York governor’s race helped his party flip three House seats and put Republicans on track to pick up two open ones. Now, party leaders say the breakthrough performance could propel him to the national stage — or least another run for office.Zeldin is already being mentioned as a possible Republican National Committee chairman, after the Long Island congressman produced the closest governor’s contest in New York since 1994. He proved he could run on a message of the economy and crime that resonated in a heavily blue state, his allies said…Other Republicans in New York touted Zeldin’s ability to come within 6 percentage points of Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul in a state with twice as many Democrats as Republicans. And his aggressive campaign seemed to have coattails: Republicans flipped two seats on his native Long Island, beat Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Sean Patrick Maloney in the Hudson Valley, secured an open seat with Marc Molinaro in upstate, and are ahead in another open seat in Syracuse.
Zeldin would probably do a great job in this role.
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