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Harmeet Dhillon. RNC chair Ronna McDaniel.
Harmeet Dhillon. RNC chair Ronna McDaniel.Getty Images

RNC chair race divides mega-donor family

Liz Uihlein is backing the RNC's current chairwoman, Ronna McDaniel, while Dick Uihlein is supporting Harmeet Dhillon.

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This month's race to lead the Republican National Committee has split one prominent GOP mega-donor family: Elizabeth and Richard Uihlein.

Elizabeth (who regularly goes by Liz) is backing the party's current chairwoman, Ronna McDaniel, who has argued she deserves another term leading the party, which she's done since 2017.

But while McDaniel continues to tout the endorsements of the majority of the members of the voting-members of the Republican National Committee, she still faces a challenge from critics who represent the party's right flank, including California Republican National Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon. Richard, also known as Dick, has endorsed Dhillon.

Liz Uihlein is one of about 150 GOP figures who signed a new letter released Tuesday, endorsing McDaniel. The letter praises her "integrity and transparency," adding that "demonstrated good judgement and a steady hand as she guided the RNC through challenging political times."

Dhillon posted a statement from Dick Uihlein on Twitter announcing his endorsement, which says: "While I appreciate the work that Ronna McDaniel has done during her tenure as RNC Chair, it's time for a leader willing and equipped to prevail in the fight against the radical left."

The Uihlein family, who run the Wisconsin-based Uline shipping supplies company, are some of the biggest GOP donors in the country — they donated $91.8 million to federal races last cycle, including more than $30 million to boost the Club for Growth. And they're prolific donors to state-level politics too, including spending about $54 million toward Illinois' gubernatorial race and about $1 million in direct donations toward state-level races in Wisconsin.