US President-elect Donald Trump has announced that Susie Wiles, his campaign manager, will take on the role of White House Chief of Staff. This appointment makes Wiles the first woman in US history to serve in this high-ranking position, underscoring her impact and leadership within Trump’s 2024 campaign.

Wiles, who has kept a low public profile throughout her work, was praised by Trump during his election night speech in Palm Beach, Florida. He introduced her as “The Ice Maiden” and highlighted her preference for operating behind the scenes. When invited to say a few words, Wiles declined and instead urged senior advisor Chris LaCivita, her campaign counterpart, to step forward.

Trump lauded Wiles in a statement, calling her “tough, smart, innovative, and universally admired and respected.” He expressed that her historic appointment as Chief of Staff was a “well-deserved honor” and credited her strategic influence as key to his victory in 2024.

Wiles has a long history with the Trump political team, beginning with her work on his 2016 campaign in Florida. She briefly departed to lead Ron DeSantis’s successful gubernatorial bid in 2018, though she later referred to her role in DeSantis’s campaign as the “biggest mistake” of her career. By 2021, she had become CEO of Trump’s Save America PAC and was later elevated to a senior campaign position when Trump announced his latest run for the White House.