Richard Walters (political advisor)

Richard Walters was born on June 28,^[1] 1989.^[2]

Walters began working for the Republican National Committee in 2013 as a financial official.^[3] By August 2017, he had become the finance director of the committee. That month, Walters was named as the Republican National Committee's acting chief of staff after Sara Armstrong's resignation.^[4] His work involved managing the committee's budget and personnel, including investments in its operations. In February 2020, ProPublica reported that Walters had established a company, Red Wave Strategies, in December 2018; the company was used to obscure his salary, which exceeded that of officials at the Democratic National Committee and his superiors.^[2] Amid an outbreak of COVID-19 at the White House, Walters tested positive for the virus in November 2020.^[5]

In February 2022, Walters resigned as the Republican National Committee's chief of staff, though he remained committee as a full-time employee to advise chairwoman Ronna McDaniel; according to Politico, Walters intended to leave the committee after the 2020 presidential election, but remained to assist in helping his successor, Mike Reed, transition. He was the longest-serving chief of staff in the committee's history.^[3] Walters was investigated by the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.^[6] He advised Donald Trump's presidential campaign for the 2024 election.^[7]

In March 2025, Walters became a partner at the public relations firm FGS Global.^[7] In May, The Wall Street Journal reported that Walters was among several political advisors who had founded American Growth Partnership, an executive network closely associated with Trump.^[8]