Chip Saltsman

John Bruce "Chip" Saltsman Jr. (born March 24, 1968) is an American politician who has served as chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party from 1999 to 2001, senior political advisor to former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, and manager of Mike Huckabee's 2008 presidential campaign.

Under Saltsman's watch as state party chairman in 2000, then-Governor George W. Bush defeated then-Vice President Al Gore in his home state of Tennessee.

Saltsman followed this accomplishment by working as development director for Senator Frist at the National Republican Senatorial Committee in the 2002, where he helped Republicans regain control of the Senate after the defection of Senator Jim Jeffords handed the chamber to Democratic control in May 2001.

Saltsman then became Senior Political Advisor to Majority Leader Frist at VOLPAC, a political action committee chaired by Frist and dedicated to recruitment and support of Republican candidates for political office nationwide.

In 2004, eighteen of the twenty-two races that VOLPAC supported were successful.

And, in 2006, VOLPAC helped ensure the election of Senator Bob Corker over Harold Ford, Jr. in Tennessee.

Saltsman was also an important figure in Senator Frist's preparations for a potential run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and was labeled "Frist's secret weapon" by Chris Cillizza of The Washington Post and "a multi-talented superstar ... [who has] demonstrated uncanny, remarkable leadership in every endeavor he's undertaken" by Frist himself.

Saltsman was nominated by Marc Ambinder of The Atlantic as one of the top four campaign managers of the election cycle, and has since been labeled a "noted GOP strategist" with "a strong future on the national campaign-management stage."

Saltsman announced his candidacy for RNC Chairman, after frequent mentions prior to announcing.

In his bid for the RNC Chairmanship, Saltsman was endorsed by: former Republican presidential candidate Governor Mike Huckabee, former United States Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, Tennessee Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey, and Tennessee House Majority Leader Jason Mumpower.

Saltsman dropped out one day before the voting following a controversy regarding Saltsman's distribution of a CD containing the song 'Barack the Magic Negro".

After incumbent U.S. Representative Zach Wamp decided to leave Congress to run for Governor of Tennessee, Saltsman became campaign manager for Chuck Fleischmann, an attorney and former talk radio host who sought the Republican nomination to succeed Wamp in the third congressional district seat.

In 2008, Tim James hired Saltsman to serve as a senior advisor on his 2010 Alabama gubernatorial campaign.

James ultimately came in third place in the primary and failed to make the runoff.

He also worked for the Chuck Fleischmann campaign in Tennessee's 3rd district from 2009 to 2010.

Mike Huckabee endorsed Fleischmann in March 2010.

Fleischmann's biggest competition in the Republican primary was expected to come from former state GOP chairwoman Robin Smith.

The U.S. House Republican whip Eric Cantor, chief deputy whip Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican Conference chairman Mike Pence and Newt Gingrich had endorsed Smith.

Fleischmann won the August 5, 2010, primary, topping a field of 11 candidates with about 30% of the vote and edging out second-place finisher Robin Smith, who earned 28%.

Randy Boyd, who was previously the commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, announced in March 2017 that he would be running for governor in the 2018 election.

Boyd tapped Saltsman to serve as the Campaign CEO.

Saltsman also worked for Randy Boyd's unsuccessful Tennessee Gubernatorial campaign in 2018.

Saltsman was born in Nashville, Tennessee, to parents Bruce Saltsman and Edna Elaine Saltsman.

He attended Father Ryan High School, a Catholic high school in Nashville, and then Christian Brothers University in Memphis, where he earned his bachelor's and master's in business administration degrees.

While at Christian Brothers, Saltsman was active in the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, the Knights of Columbus and student government.

Former Congresswoman Diane Black and Boyd as recently as June 2018 were considered to be the frontrunners to win the Republican primary.

Bill Lee ended up winning the primary with 37% of the vote, followed by Boyd at 24% and Black at 23%, despite Boyd being the biggest spender in the governor's race.

Black was second in spending.

Boyd’s campaign led by Saltsman was marred by infighting and hostility.

One report said, “After opening a Shelby County HQ last Saturday, they capped the day by dressing down Shelby County’s GOP chairman and terrorizing diners at the GOP dinner that night.

All because they weren’t treated the way they believed they deserved to be treated.”

Dr. Phil Roe decided not to seek reelection in Tennessee's First Congressional District, setting up an open primary in 2020.

State Senator Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City), was considered an early favorite, having been a state senator nearly 30 years.

Crowe led by 10% in a January poll conducted by Spry Strategies.

Crowe hired Saltsman in June 2020 for his congressional campaign.

Despite starting out with a lead in the polls and being one of the leading spenders in the race, Crowe finished in third place.

Crowe's loss represents the second consecutive primary contest where Saltsman's candidate lost.

Saltsman worked on Free Forever PAC in 2020, which supported Kris Kobach during the 2020 Kansas Senate primary.

Kobach lost to Roger Marshall by 14% in the primary.

Kobach initially came to prominence in U.S. politics over his hardline views on immigration, and his involvement in the implementation of high-profile anti-immigration ordinances in various American towns.