Former President Donald Trump said there is “probably a good chance” he will announce his vice presidential pick at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July. Generally, presumptive nominees announce their running mate in the weeks or months leading up to the convention.
“I don’t say anything is 100%, but you’re getting pretty close,” Trump said when asked by Scripps News political correspondent Charles Benson if he will wait until the high-profile event, which takes place July 15-18.
Waiting until the convention to announce a running mate is rare, but it could provide a major splash during what has become a mostly predictable four-day event. The most recent example of a candidate waiting until the convention to choose a running mate was in 1988 when George H.W. Bush announced Dan Quayle as his vice presidential pick at the RNC in New Orleans.
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Trump announced Mike Pence three days ahead of the RNC in 2016. Joe Biden picked Kamala Harris as his running mate a week before the Democratic National Convention in 2020.
Senators, governors and some former Republican presidential rivals are thought to be considered for Trump’s running mate. Many of them have made trips to visit Trump in southern Florida at Mar-a-Lago or joined him in Manhattan during his criminal trial. Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio and Tim Scott of South Carolina, as well as North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, are among Trump’s top surrogates on the campaign trail. Sen. Marco Rubio has also been widely considered a possible running mate to Trump.
President Biden has already committed to running again with Harris this fall.