Donald Trump's Vice President Shortlist Raises Questions

Donald Trump suggested that at least six names are on his shortlist to be his potential vice president during a Fox News interview.

During the town hall event in South Carolina on Tuesday, host Laura Ingraham asked Trump about six possible candidates: Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, Byron Donalds, Kristi Noem, Tim Scott and Tulsi Gabbard.

"Are they all on your shortlist?" she asked.

Trump responded: "They are... honestly all of those people are good. They're all good, they're all solid."

The Context

Trump is the GOP frontrunner currently polling at 77.7 percent nationally, according to an average put forth by website FiveThirtyEight. According to a Morning Consult poll of 6,321 registered voters conducted from February 17 to 19, the Republican is at 45 percent and Democratic President Joe Biden stands at 41 percent.

What We Know

Until the Fox News interview, Trump had been reticent to reveal his potential pick for vice president. Newsweek contacted a representative for Trump by email to comment on this story.

He had consistently criticized DeSantis, who dropped out of the Republican primary race before endorsing Trump, nicknaming him Ron DeSanctimonious.

Scott, the South Carolina senator, dropped out of the race for the White House in November and endorsed Trump.

Noem, the governor of South Dakota, is another Trump loyalist with close ties to the MAGA movement.

Ramaswamy also previously ran in the GOP primaries and has now endorsed Trump.

Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman who ran for president in 2020, has since become a regular on conservative media.

Rep. Donalds, a Florida Republican, has in the past described himself as a "Trump-supporting, gun-owning, liberty-loving, pro-life, politically incorrect Black man."

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, online commentators questioned who Trump might pick, following his Fox News appearance. Some wondered why Representative Elise Stefanik of New York, who had been rumored to be on Trump's list, was not mentioned.

"Elise Stefanik didn't get mentioned," said one X user.

Another questioned why Kari Lake, who is running for the Senate in Arizona and has consistently supported Trump was not on the shortlist. One X user wrote: "No Kari Lake?"

"Watch him pick Kari Lake out of nowhere at the last second," another said.

Former federal prosecutor Ron Filipkowski, a prominent Trump critic, questioned whether Trump acknowledging Ingraham's list was tantamount to him actually announcing a shortlist.

"So because Trump goes along with Laura's list of names in this setting you think his choice is on it?" he said. "I'm not doing a very good job then."

Views

Christopher Devine, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton, Ohio, and author of the book Do Running Mates Matter?: The Influence of Vice Presidential Candidates in Presidential Elections, has suggested we are in "veepstakes season" with regards to predicting who Trump may want to be included on his 2024 ticket, with CPAC a perfect time for potential candidates to promote themselves for the position.

"It is early in that process and I do not expect that Donald Trump will make his decision until the summer," Devine told Newsweek.

"But that won't stop VP aspirants from auditioning for the role. And CPAC gives them the stage to do it."

What's Next?

Presidential candidates typically their choice of running mates in the days and weeks leading up to the party conventions. Until then, speculation about who Trump's running mate will be will remain just that.

Update 12/21/23, 3:47 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.