Trump Appears To Rule Out Pence As Future Running Mate

Topline

Former President Donald Trump will likely go with a new running mate if he runs and wins the Republican presidential nomination again in 2024, he told the Washington Examiner, after former Vice President Mike Pence refused to go along with Trump’s calls to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.

Then Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump greets then vice presidential candidate Mike Pence after his speech on day three of the Republican National Convention on July 20, 2016. TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images

Key Facts

Trump, who’s hinted he’ll run in 2024 but has made no official announcement, told the conservative news outlet he doesn't believe “the people would accept" Pence again given the break between the two over the election results.

Pence said at an event last month he "had no right to overturn the election,” calling Trump “wrong” for claiming he had that power.

Trump and close associates like attorney Rudy Giuliani had pressured Pence to somehow block the certification of the 2020 presidential election results when Electoral College votes were presented to Congress on January 6, 2021, but Pence did not intervene in his largely ceremonial role overseeing the proceedings.

In the interview, Trump did say, “I still like Mike,” but noted he hadn’t spoken to him “in a long time.”

Crucial Quote

“Mike and I had a great relationship, except for the very important factor that took place at the end,” Trump said.

Key Background

Pence had been one of Trump’s most loyal allies for the duration of his presidency, but their relationship collapsed on January 6, 2021, when the then vice president had to be rushed to safety as Trump supporters forced their way into the U.S. Capitol. Trump tweeted out an attack on Pence as his supporters stormed the Capitol, saying, “Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution.” Some rioters notably chanted, “Hang Mike Pence!” as they made their way through the building. Augmenting this chant was a noose affixed to a makeshift gallows set up by rioters outside the U.S. Capitol.

What To Watch For

Polling shows Trump as a heavy favorite to win the GOP nomination again if he runs in 2024, though Pence over the past few months seems to have started laying his own groundwork for a potential 2024 presidential bid. That includes taking digs at his former boss, like when he said earlier this month there was no room in the Republican Party for “apologists” for Russian President Vladimir Putin, in an apparent rebuke of Trump’s lavish praise for Putin last month, saying it was “genius” for Putin to recognize two pro-Kremlin breakaway states to justify invading Ukraine.

What We Don't Know

It’s not clear whom Trump is leaning toward picking as a running mate if he wins the nomination in 2024. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) had long been speculated as a future partner for Trump, but tensions have grown between the two in recent months.