Turning Point Action AmericaFest 2022 straw poll results reveal overwhelming call for new RNC leadership
The RNC will choose its next chair in a secret ballot vote next month at its winter meeting
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}EXCLUSIVE: Participants of Turning Point Action's AmericaFest 2022 straw poll overwhelmingly voted for a change in leadership of the Republican National Committee, as the majority of respondents called for GOP lawyer Harmeet Dhillion to replace Ronna McDaniel as party chair.
Turning Point Action conducted a straw poll on Dec. 19, which polled 1,150 participants. The straw poll came after members of Turning Point Action's leadership endorsed Dhillon in her bid for GOP chair.
According to the results, shared exclusively with Fox News Digital, 65% of respondents "strongly disapprove" of the job McDaniel is doing leading the RNC, and just 1.6% of respondents said they "strongly approve."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Participants were then polled on who they believe should run the party, giving the options of McDaniel, MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell or Harmeet Dhillon, CEO of the Center for American Liberty and co-chair of the Republican National Lawyers Association.
Ronna McDaniel, chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, was a distant third place in a Turning Point Action's AmFest 2022 straw poll when participants were asked who should lead the RNC. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The poll results said 57.6% voted in favor of Dhillon taking over the chairmanship of the RNC, 31% voted for Lindell, 1.7% voted for McDaniel, and 9.7% said they are "unsure" or have "no opinion."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dhillon, an attorney who is also an RNC committee member from California and served as a Trump campaign legal adviser, announced her bid to lead the RNC on the Fox News Channel earlier this month.
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Dhillon emphasized in an interview with Fox News Digital that she wants to take the party in a "fresh direction."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Attorney Harmeet Dhillon, California's national committeewoman for the Republican National Committee, is hoping to be the next leader of the RNC. (Anda Chu/MediaNews Group/Bay Area News via Getty Images)
Lindell, who is a strong supporter of former President Trump’s claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged and stolen, also announced he will challenge McDaniel.
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Participants were also polled on whether members of the RNC "should listen to the grassroots when considering who to vote for RNC chair," to which 92.9% voted "yes."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Mike Lindell, president and chief executive officer of My Pillow Inc., placed second in a straw poll on who should lead the RNC. (Photographer: Aaron P. Bernstein/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
But according to a spokesperson for McDaniel's re-elect, her decision to run was "member driven." There are more than 100 RNC committee members who support McDaniel, a number that would far exceed the simple majority of the 168 members needed for McDaniel to secure her fourth two-year term at RNC chair.
"Just like the RNC, Chairwoman McDaniel’s decision to run for re-election was member driven. Members of the 168 rallied around the Chairwoman because of her unprecedented investments in the grassroots, election integrity, and minority communities, and for taking on Big Tech and the biased Commission on Presidential Debates," Emma Vaughn, spokesperson from Ronna McDaniel's re-elect told Fox News.
Vaughn said that "support for the Chairwoman has only grown since her announcement and she looks forward to speaking with each and every member to discuss how the party can continue building upon our investments and make the necessary improvements to compete and win in 2024."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Charlie Kirk, founder and executive director of Turning Point USA, speaks during the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit in Tampa, Florida, US, on Friday, July 22, 2022. (Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The RNC membership will choose the next chair in a secret ballot vote, when the national party organization holds its winter meeting next month in Southern California.
The race for RNC chair comes after the 2022 midterm elections that gave the GOP a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives. However, Republicans failed to win control of the Senate, despite months of campaigning and party officials predicting a "red wave" election.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The poll was conducted at TPUSA’s AmericaFest 2022, which took place from Dec. 17 to Dec. 20 in Phoenix.
Fox News' Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.