Vance, 39, is the bestselling author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” who once suggested that Trump is “America’s Hitler”
Donald Trump has chosen Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance to be his 2024 running mate on the Republican White House ticket.
“After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance,” Trump posted on Truth Social during the roll call vote of the Republican National Convention.
Vance, 39, was one of several people rumored to be on Trump’s vice presidential shortlist earlier this year, and one of three names elevated to finalist status in recent weeks, alongside North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
Vance once described himself as a “never-Trump guy” and suggested that the former president was both “America’s Hitler” and an “idiot.” Despite calling Trump’s policies “immoral to absurd” at one point, Vance flipped a 180 to become a staunch mouthpiece for MAGA values while running for Senate in 2022.
“He’s a guy that said some bad s— about me,” Trump noted at a pro-Vance rally during the 2022 midterms. “But I have to do what I have to do [by endorsing him for Senate]. We have to pick somebody that can win.”
Vance ultimately proved an effective MAGA defender while stumping for Trump on the 2024 presidential campaign trail. He now says he’s “very close” with the former president and that they “talk all the time.”
Prior to entering politics, Vance was a venture capitalist best known as the author of Hillbilly Elegy, a memoir that was adapted into a 2020 Netflix film starring Glenn Close and Amy Adams.
Trump launched his 2024 presidential campaign in November 2022, an early announcement that came amid investigations into his conduct on Jan. 6, 2021 — when a mob of rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol on his behalf in an attempt to stop Joe Biden’s election victory from being certified — and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.
He has since been indicted four times on a total of 88 criminal counts, 34 of which resulted in convictions. He was also ordered to pay hefty fines in multiple civil cases related to sexual abuse, defamation and fraud.
Despite his legal challenges and low favorability rating, Trump bulldozed competition in the Republican primaries, knocking off challengers one at a time without ever taking the debate stage.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley emerged as his strongest competitor, and though she secured primary victories in Vermont and Washington, D.C., she was forced to suspend her campaign after Super Tuesday when it became clear that the majority of Republican voters weren’t ready to move past Trump.
Trump has spent the past several months auditioning his shortlisted VP candidates, testing their loyalty and aptitude by having them hit the campaign trail and defend him in live TV appearances.
Ahead of a Pennsylvania campaign rally on Saturday, July 13, Trump teased that he may use the pre-RNC event to reveal his vice presidential pick. The rally was abruptly cut short, however, when a now-deceased gunman opened fire toward the stage, grazing the president’s ear and forcing an evacuation. One bystander was killed, and two others were critically injured.
Trump’s team announced shortly after the shooting that the former president was doing “fine” and would attend the RNC as planned.
