WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump named Susie Wiles, the de facto manager of his victorious campaign, as White House chief of staff, the first woman to hold the influential role.

Wiles is widely recognized inside and outside Trump’s inner circle for running what was by far his most disciplined and well-executed campaign and was seen as the front-runner for the position. She has largely avoided the spotlight, even refusing to take the microphone to speak as Trump celebrated his victory early Wednesday morning. She resisted the official title of campaign manager, avoiding becoming a target given Trump’s history of cycling through people in that role.

Wiles’ hiring is Trump’s first major decision as president-elect, and one that could be a defining test of his incoming administration as he must quickly build the team to help run the massive federal government. Wiles doesn’t bring a lot of government experience to the role, but he has a close relationship with the president-elect.

On the campaign trail, Wiles was able to do what few others were able to do: help temper Trump’s impulses — not by scolding or lecturing him, but by earning his respect and showing him that he was better off following him advice than to break it. .

Eight years ago, Trump abandoned the careful planning of his transition team and instead hired a diverse array of campaign aides, family members and Republican insiders who spent most of his first year in office engaged in infighting that dominated news coverage of the new administration. . It was what many experts consider a fundamental mistake that kept a president who was new to Washington and government from taking the oath of office.

Trump went through four chiefs of staff — including one who served as acting for a year — during his first administration, part of a record-setting staff retrenchment. Many top advisers were sidelined by Trump in his first term, who resented feeling managed or condescended to, while others were caught up in ideological conflicts within the factionalized West Wing.

Trump aides see hope that Wiles’ selection marks a sign that the president-elect is aiming to build a more cohesive team, albeit one that will almost certainly remain less conventional than his Democratic or Republican predecessors.

Trump, who promised in 2016 to hire “only the best people,” has since said repeatedly that he believes the biggest mistake of his first term was hiring the wrong people. He was new to Washington then, he said, and didn’t know any better. But now, Trump said, he knows the “best people” and those to avoid for roles in his administration.

“Susie is tough, smart, innovative and universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to make America Great Again,” Trump said in a statement. “It is a well-deserved honor to have Susie as the first female chief of staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will our proud country.”

Successful chiefs of staff serve as the president’s confidant, help execute the president’s agenda, and balance competing political and policy priorities. They also tend to serve as a gatekeeper, helping to determine who the president spends time with and who he talks to — an effort Trump has challenged inside the White House.

The chief of staff is “absolutely critical to an effective White House,” said Chris Whipple, whose book “The Gatekeepers” details how the role of the White House chief of staff shapes and defines a presidency. “At the end of the day, the most important thing is to tell the president what he doesn’t want to hear.”

“On the positive side, she’s shown that she can handle Trump, that she can work with him and that she can sometimes tell him hard truths, and that’s very important,” Whipple said. “On the downside, she really has no White House experience and hasn’t worked in Washington in 40 years, and that’s a real disadvantage.

Wiles is a longtime Florida Republican strategist who managed Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns in the state and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ successful run for office in 2018. Before that, she managed Rick Scott’s campaign since 2010 for governor of Florida and served briefly. as former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman’s 2012 presidential campaign manager.

Wiles also worked in the offices of former Jacksonville mayors John Delaney and John Peyton.

Chris LaCivita, who along with Wiles served as the de facto campaign manager, described Wiles as someone who is inclusive in conversations, seeks out the input of others and is loyal.

“Susie is functionally built differently because it has that rare commodity to be able to work on so many important issues at once,” LaCivita told The Associated Press.

It was Wiles who was tasked with having the toughest talks with Trump and about every essential conversation. She worked well with his family and developed relationships with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Elon Musk, which positioned her as a key conduit for Trump’s budding alliances with those men.

“She can really handle any ego that comes her way,” LaCivita said. “And she doesn’t do it any other way than being very simple and paying attention to the details.”

He added: “The most important commodity in politics is honesty and loyalty, and Susie has both in large quantities.”

Wiles was seen by Trump’s advisers as someone who could guide his moods and impulses without necessarily restraining him. Trump often referred to Wiles on the campaign trail, publicly praising her leadership for what he said was often told was his “best-run campaign.”

“She’s incredible. Unbelievable,” he said at a rally in Milwaukee earlier this month,

At a rally in Pennsylvania, where Trump made one of his last appearances before the election, he launched into a profane and conspiracy-laden speech. Wiles was seen standing offstage and appearing to watch him.

Later, at a rally in Pittsburgh, Trump appeared to acknowledge his adviser’s efforts to keep him on message.

After complaining that men are no longer allowed to call a woman “beautiful,” he asked if he could erase that word from the record. “I’m allowed to do that, aren’t I, Susan Wiles?” he thought.