Republican Party chair predicts Trump will play a highly active role on the campaign trail during the 2026 midterm elections.
As President-elect Trump begins his second term in the White House, his time as a candidate is coming to an end.
Although he is term-limited and won't appear on future ballots, Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley predicts Trump will continue to play a "significant" role in supporting GOP candidates during the 2026 midterm elections. "President Trump is going to be a very significant part of this effort because, at the end of the day, we need to retain control of the House and Senate to complete his term and advance his agenda," Whatley said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital at RNC headquarters in Washington, D.C.VANCE EXPECTED TO BE 2028 GOP PRESIDENTIAL FRONT-RUNNER, BUT RNC CHAIR PRAISES PARTY'S 'STRONG BENCH
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Historically, the party in power faces challenges in the subsequent midterm elections. Additionally, with Trump, a key driver of voter turnout this year, not appearing on the 2026 ballot, the dynamics will shift.
Whatley predicted, "Donald Trump will remain highly active on the campaign trail for Republicans, and his agenda will be the one we champion in our campaigns.
The Harris campaign and the Democratic National Committee outpaced the Trump campaign and the RNC in fundraising during the last cycle. However, Whatley is confident that with the White House soon to be under Republican control, the party will be even more competitive in the midterm fundraising race.
We're really excited about the fundraising we've done this cycle and what we plan to achieve moving forward," he said.
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Whatley explained that his message to donors will be, We successfully got Donald Trump into the White House, and now we need to advance his agenda by maintaining these House and Senate majorities.
He also responded to ongoing criticism of the RNC and Trump campaign's ground game efforts during the general election.
"We focused heavily on low-propensity voters. We implemented a completely new system during this election cycle, and it worked extremely well," he emphasized.
Looking ahead, he added, "In a midterm election cycle, low-propensity voters will again be crucial for us. We’ll continue to prioritize building that type of program.
Whatley highlighted, We also made a concerted effort to reach out to communities that the Republican Party has traditionally overlooked – Black, Hispanic, and Asian American voters. This outreach helped drive significant shifts toward Donald Trump compared to where these groups were in 2016 and 2020. We also saw substantial movement among young voters and women because we engaged with every American voter. Our ground game played a crucial role in that success.
Whatley was interviewed earlier this month, just a week after Trump asked him to remain as RNC chair.
In March, as he secured the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, Trump appointed Whatley to succeed Ronna McDaniel as RNC chair. A longtime ally of the former president and a strong advocate for Trump's election integrity efforts, Whatley had previously served as RNC general counsel and chair of the North Carolina Republican Party.
