Susie Wiles

Susan Summerall Wiles (born May 14, 1957) is an American political consultant who, as of April 2024, has been serving as a senior advisor to Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign. Wiles has been described as the "de facto campaign manager" of the campaign.

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. She graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Career
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.

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.

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.

In January 2011, Wiles was hired as campaign manager for former Governor of Utah Jon Huntsman Jr.'s 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.

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

Work for Donald Trump
In the 2016 presidential election, Wiles ran the Trump campaign's operations in Florida. During the 2018 Florida gubernatorial election, Wiles was reportedly deputized by Trump to help Republican Ron DeSantis' campaign for Governor. In his victory speech, DeSantis described Wiles as the "best in the business". However, "rising tensions between the duo" led to her dismissal as a top advisor to DeSantis in 2019. According to the reporting from one source (Politico.com), the tie to Wiles, who had "played a key role in... 2016", was cut "at the urging of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis", to allow him "to install his own allies in the state party", a move "widely seen as a setback to the president’s re-election campaign" in that battleground state.

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. Under her leadership, Save America PAC has covered legal fees for several current and former Trump staffers involved in the many legal proceedings against the former president.

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. Alongside individuals such as businessman Peter Thiel, Wiles pushed Trump to endorse Blake Masters in the 2022 Senate election in Arizona.

As of January 2023, Wiles was at the "helm" of Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, serving as a top political advisor. Alongside fellow advisors Brian Jack and Chris LaCivita, Wiles has been described as one of the "top campaign aides" in Trump's inner circle.

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. According to ABC News, sources have said that the person is Susie Wiles.

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

Following Trump's inauguration, her daughter Caroline Wiles was hired by the White House as deputy assistant to the president and director of scheduling. 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 driving while intoxicated in both 2005 and 2007. Caroline Wiles ultimately left the White House in February 2017 after failing a background check by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.