Trump Says He May Wait to Announce VP at July GOP Convention

President Donald Trump delivers his acceptance speech for the Republican presidential nomination on the South Lawn of the White House on Aug. 27, 2020. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

As anticipation builds for who former President Donald Trump will choose as his 2024 running mate, the 45th president said in an interview released Thursday he would likely announce it at the Republican Convention this summer.

The convention is slated for July in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a key battleground state in the 2024 election that President Trump won in 2016 but narrowly lost to President Joe Biden in 2020.

“That’s probably a pretty good chance, I would say,” President Trump said in an interview with Scripps News released on Thursday, in reference to whether or not he would announce his pick at the convention. “I don’t say anything is 100 percent, but you’re getting pretty close. I'll be doing it in Milwaukee.”

President Trump in 2016 announced his then-vice presidential pick Mike Pence just three days prior to the Republican Convention that summer in Cleveland, Ohio.

The last time a presumptive Republican nominee for president waited until the convention to announce their vice presidential running mate was in 1988 when then-Vice President George H.W. Bush announced his running mate Dan Quayle on the third day of the party’s August convention.

The last time a presumptive Democratic nominee for president waited until the convention to announce their vice presidential running mate was in 1976 when Jimmy Carter announced Walter Mondale as his pick on the last night of the party’s July convention.

Since the 1968 presidential election, the earliest a presumptive nominee announced their running mate was in 2004 when Democratic nominee John Kerry announced John Edwards as his running mate 20 days prior to the convention, while on the GOP side, Mitt Romney announced his running mate Paul Ryan 16 days prior to the 2012 Republican convention.

Trump’s 2024 Veepstakes

President Trump has teased some high-profile names as being on his list of potential running mates while also ruling out other high-profile names. Ultimately, the front runner for President Trump’s running mate has not been easy to assess as he has been careful in commenting publicly on any one rumored pick over another.

Earlier this week, a few potential running mates for the former president appeared in a show of support for President Trump outside of a courthouse where his New York trial is currently ongoing.

Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) appeared alongside President Trump in the Manhattan courthouse on Monday, while on Tuesday two other men rumored to be on the shortlist for President Trump’s 2024 vice presidential pick—Gov. Doug Burgum (R-N.D.) and former GOP candidate for president Vivek Ramaswamy—also appeared alongside him at the courthouse.

In addition to these men, names such as Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), former Trump cabinet member Dr. Ben Carson, and former Democrat Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (I-Hawaii), have been mentioned.

Earlier this month, a group of rumored VP candidates traveled to President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property and club in Florida for a fundraiser in what was considered auditions for the number two spot on the GOP ticket.

Among those in attendance were Mr. Burgum and Mr. Scott, as well as Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.).

President Trump’s former United Nations ambassador and failed 2024 GOP nominee challenger Nikki Haley “is not under consideration for the V.P. slot,” he said in a Truth Social post earlier this month.

GOP Convention in July

The Republican nominating convention in Milwaukee will be held July 15–18 in the city, with tens of thousands of delegates, guests, and members of the media traveling from around the country—as well as millions more tuning in from home—to watch the democratic process play out and to officially nominate President Trump and his running mate to represent the party on the November ballot.

“We’re going to have a great time,” President Trump added in his Scripps News interview. “It’s a beautiful arena. It’s a beautiful space and we’re spending a lot of money and we’re bringing it to the state and I hope the people when they vote are going to remember that because we’re bringing a lot of jobs and a lot of economic development.”

President Trump noted the “plenty of options” the GOP had for their convention, with Milwaukee, Nashville, Pittsburgh, and Salt Lake City all considered by the party for the host of their festivities. Milwaukee was also the host of the Democrats’ 2020 convention, although it was mostly held virtually due to COVID-19.

Republicans were set to host their 2020 convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic the convention was largely held virtually with events also taking place on the South Lawn of the White House.

President Trump added the importance of the state of Wisconsin to the 2024 election, noting in his interview, “It really is an important state for us. Wisconsin has to be won by us. We want to win it. If we win Wisconsin, I think we win the whole thing.”