Republican Governors tap Reynolds aide as next executive director

Craig Gongol will take over the group in January of subsequent yr. She was one of many prime aides on Reynolds’ 2018 marketing campaign, and she or he has labored on different campaigns within the state and nationally, together with on now-Sen. Mitt Romney’s 2012 Iowa campaign.

Craig Gongol replaces outgoing government director David Rexrode, a Virginia operative who has been the highest staffer on the RGA for the final 4 years. Senior workers at gubernatorial committees sometimes serve in four-year cycles.

“Sara has been a useful useful resource for me throughout my four-year tenure as government director and I’m extremely excited to welcome her as our new chief,” Rexrode stated in a press release. “The group is in good fingers with Sara in management and I’m assured extra Republican governors can be elected due to her dedication to operating efficient operations.”

Elections in three historically purple states would be the first contests of Craig Gongol’s tenure subsequent yr: Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi.

The primary two have incumbent Democratic governors, with Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear operating for reelection whereas Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards is term-limited and can’t run once more. In Mississippi, Republican Gov. Tate Reeves is eligible to run for one more time period after he narrowly beat a Democrat for the seat in 2019.

The final two years have been up and down for Republican governors. The social gathering scored an enormous upset victory in 2021, when now-Gov. Glenn Youngkin received Virginia’s governorship over former Gov. Terry McAuliffe. However the 2022 midterms have been largely a disappointment for the GOP. Nevada Gov.-elect Joe Lombardo was the one Republican to flip a state in 2022, beating Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak, and the social gathering misplaced a trio of open seats in Arizona, Maryland and Massachusetts.