Donald Trump announced Monday he picked Ohio Sen. JD Vance to be his running mate in the 2024 presidential campaign.
Just an hour before Trump was expected to announce his pick at the Republican National Convention, he posted Vance would be his choice on Truth Social.
He wrote, “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 of the Great State of Ohio. J.D. honorably served our Country in the Marine Corps, graduated from Ohio State University in two years, Summa Cum Laude, and is a Yale Law School Graduate, where he was Editor of The Yale Law Journal, and President of the Yale Law Veterans Association. J.D.’s book, “Hillbilly Elegy,” became a Major Best Seller and Movie, as it championed the hardworking men and women of our Country. J.D. has had a very successful business career in Technology and Finance, and now, during the Campaign, will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond….”
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, was the first to announce Trump’s pick on the floor of the convention. Lee stood to cast Utah’s 40 delegate votes for Trump “and his newly announced running-mate, my friend and colleague, J.D. Vance.” The announcement drew applause and chants of “J.D.!”
Trump was also considering Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who were reportedly told earlier on Monday they would not be the nominee.
Since Vance joined the Senate two years ago, he has championed populist policies and while trying to appeal to working class voters. He himself comes from a working class background, growing up in Jackson, Kentucky, and Middletown, Ohio, which he wrote about in his best-selling 2016 memoir “Hillbilly Elegy.”
A veteran of the U.S. Marines, Vance, 39, attended Yale Law School before launching a career in venture capitalism. Before running for Senate, he focused on investing in startups in the Midwest.
Vance is married to Usha Vance, a litigator who he met at Yale Law School. They have three young children.
Vance was once a fierce critic of Trump. In 2016, Vance called the then-candidate an “idiot” and said he was “reprehensible.” He reportedly went as far as comparing Trump to Adolf Hitler.
But during his short stint in the Senate, Vance garnered a reputation as one of Trump’s top allies. He is a leading voice on a more isolationist foreign policy, pushing against foreign aid to Ukraine upon the basis that there is “no viable plan” for Ukraine to defeat Russia. He has argued the U.S. should instead focus on brokering for peace instead of aiding Ukraine’s military efforts.
The foreign aid package that passed the Senate in April — and supplied aid to Israel, Taiwan and Ukraine — faced staunch opposition from Vance. “The United States is spread too thin,” Vance said after its passage. “And that argument, I think, is winning the American people and it’s slowly winning the Senate, but it’s not going to happen overnight.”
This story is breaking and will be updated.