Former President Donald Trump and his campaign have reportedly begun the process of vetting possible running mates for the 2024 Republican ticket, requesting documents from at least half a dozen potential candidates. While Trump campaign sources indicate that the search for a vice president is “fluid and evolving,” the new phase of the selection process suggests that Trump is nearing a decision ahead of the Republican National Convention next month.
Among those being vetted are three names that have often been discussed as possibilities: Florida Senator Marco Rubio, Ohio Senator JD Vance, and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, who previously ran against Trump in the Republican primary.
The Trump campaign has also requested information from South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, another of the former predesigns onetime campaign trail rivals, as well as Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who served as Trump’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
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Those named by campaign sources are likely not the only candidates in consideration, with ABC News reporting that “others are likely to be considered for the No. 2 job.” Trump aides are warning media outlets that the decision is still “fluid and evolving” entirely at the former president’s discretion.
“Anyone claiming to know who or when President Trump will choose his VP is lying, unless the person is named Donald J. Trump,” Trump campaign spokesperson Brian Hughes said in a statement.
While Trump has been tightlipped about his process of selecting a vice president thus far, each of the candidates reportedly under consideration has been a vocal supporter of his campaign during his New York hush money trial, which resulted in 34 felony counts against him.
At various points during the trial, many of the possible vice-presidential picks joined Trump’s team outside the courthouse to speak to the press or were photographed inside with Trump himself.
Those like Scott, Stefanik, and Carson, who did not make an appearance during the proceedings, have joined Trump at rallies and given their own impassioned defenses of the former president’s cause.
During a phone interview with Newsmax on Tuesday night, Trump listed Scott, Burgum, Rubio, Vance, and Carson as contenders, but gave no indication of which options were favored or where each one was in the process.
Trump has previously indicated that he will announce his candidate for vice president before or during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 15.
Connor Walcott is a staff writer for Valuetainment.com. Follow Connor on X and look for him on VT’s “The Unusual Suspects.”
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