As Donald Trump assumed the office of the President of the United States (U.S.), among the shadows of the numerous guests was Susie Wiles, whose role in Trump’s re-election was far greater than any of the VIP guests who attracted attention.
Still, Wiles prefers working from the shadows, and her qualities are evident even in the early days of the new administration in the White House.
Trump’s first term was hectic, but the second started with focus and clear guidelines, primarily thanks to Wiles, who was also the architect of his campaign – one of the most successful in the last few decades of U.S. politics.
Worked for congressmen, mayors, presidents…
Wiles began her operational career in 1979 on the team of Republican Congressman Jack Kemp in the U.S. House of Representatives. She stayed there for just over a year before “transferring” to the team of future U.S. President Ronald Reagan.
Her next engagement came during the 1990s when she led the team of John Delaney, the mayor of Jacksonville, while simultaneously working with Congresswoman Tillie Fowler.
In the early 2010s, she again worked for the mayor of Jacksonville, John Peyton, and was also actively involved in Rick Scott’s campaign for governor of the state of Florida. Under Wiles’ leadership, Scott won the election and secured this prestigious position.
The journey with Donald Trump began in 2016
In the meantime, she founded her own lobbying firm, and in 2016 she returned to direct political work, serving as the head of Donald Trump’s campaign office in Florida.
Trump, of course, won Florida, and in 2018, the U.S. President “loaned” Wiles to his party colleague Ron DeSantis, who, with her help, won the governor’s seat.
Unfortunately for Wiles, her work on DeSantis’ campaign, according to U.S. media reports, cost her a spot on Trump’s team for the 2020 election. Wiles called her work for DeSantis “the biggest mistake,” while Trump lost the election to Joe Biden.
However, the following year, Trump brought Wiles back to his team. Initially, she served as the head of his interest group “Save America,” later becoming the de facto campaign chief, which for Trump officially began in 2022.
Trump gave her the nickname “ice maiden”
When the campaign formally began, Donald Trump decided to entrust all operations to Wiles, which proved to be an excellent decision.
While his first presidential campaign – and term – was chaotic and full of controversies, the second was somewhat “more normal,” at least by Trump’s standards.
For this, analysts credited Wiles, who introduced structure, order, and discipline to a team that suddenly began functioning in unity.
More importantly for Trump, from his perspective, during the pre-election period, there were no “lone wolves” making media appearances that harmed his campaign – a result that both Trump and analysts attribute to Wiles’ influence.
In his victory speech, after the November election the previous year, Trump called Wiles the “ice maiden,” citing her approach to public relations.
Wiles does not give interviews, does not engage on social media, and has no “sources close to her” leaking information to U.S. media about the White House, creating the image of her as “cold” or unemotional.
While those who know Wiles personally describe her as extremely friendly, her cold-blooded approach transformed Trump from a “political dead man” whose supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6th, 2021, to prevent the certification of his election loss, into an absolute victor who defeated the Democratic Party on every front.
Musk and other prominent Trump collaborators took the headlines following the November victory and January inauguration, but it is Wiles who made Trump strong today and his administration efficient.