Donald Teel, the founder of iVote America, recently endorsed Harmeet Dhillon in her bid to unseat incumbent Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and has encouraged other RNC members to support Dhillon as well. Dhillon has brought in numerous endorsements recently, while McDaniel supporters have been attacking Dhillon’s Sikh faith.
“We are pleased to announce iVote America’s endorsement of Harmeet K. Dhillon for GOP chair. We are going to require new visionary leadership to fight and win tomorrow’s battles. Please, join me,” Teel said in a release posted on Twitter.
Dhillon also recently won the endorsement of Home Depot founder Bernie Marcus, who said in a letter to RNC members shared on Twitter, “Harmeet Dhillon is a fighter in our courts, in the media and elsewhere. The RNC needs someone with her real-world experience, tenacity and toughness. Please join me in supporting Harmeet Dhillon for RNC chairwoman.”
Dhillon said she was “incredibly honored” to receive Marcus’s support.
Tyler Bowyer, an RNC committeeman from Arizona, said in a tweet that Marcus’s support “is a massive endorsement that should give every member of the RNC pause and to speak at length with Harmeet Dhillon.”
Numerous state and local southern Republican Party groups are considering or have expressed votes of no confidence in incumbent McDaniel, NBC reported. Louisiana RNC member Roger Villere Jr. said his state’s party recently passed an anti-McDaniel resolution.
“The grassroots is firmly supporting a change,” Villere said. “Every vote, every call every day, I hear from people who want someone other than Ronna. … We’ve had three cycles where we’ve underachieved significantly, and it’s just time.”
The Alabama GOP also recently announced that it is encouraging “RNC members across the country” to vote against McDaniel.
McDaniel spokesperson Emma Vaugn said the incumbent chairwoman is not deterred by the votes of no confidence.
“Member support for the chairwoman has grown since her announcement and she will continue speaking with each and every member about how the party can continue building upon our investments and make the necessary improvements to compete and win in 2024,” Vaugn said.
McDaniel allies have brought up Dhillon’s Sikh faith in an effort to drive more support to McDaniel, Politico reported. One Dhillon supporter said a McDaniel ally expressed “concerns” about Dhillon’s faith in a recent phone conversation. Dhillon told Politico that it has been “hurtful to learn that a handful of RNC members, in a close race for RNC chair, have chosen to question my fitness to run the RNC by using my devout Sikh faith as a weapon against me.”
GOP commentator and McDaniel supporter Chris Horn, who also chairs Alabama’s Tennessee Valley Republican Club, defended Republicans who have raised the issue of Dhillon’s religious beliefs. “People aren’t bigots because they ask questions,” he said. “That’s a legit question: Is the Republican Party, or even the Democratic Party ready for someone of the Sikh faith? If someone from another faith wants to be the leader of our party, then you’re going to be the leader of tens of millions of Christians. And there’s not been any conversation about that at all. That’s just the fact of the matter.”
Candidate forums will take place on Jan. 25 and 26, and the 168 RNC members will vote for their chair on Jan. 27, Politico reported.
