Unexpected New Names Keep Coming Up as Hunt for Trump’s New Running Mate Begins

Since former President Donald Trump officially announced his third presidential run on Tuesday, rumors and speculation have already begun about who could be chosen to be his running mate for 2024.

Trump’s former vice president, Mike Pence, is certainly not an option, as he has publicly criticized Trump for his past actions, particularly regarding Jan. 6. Pence has even hinted at possibly running himself in 2024, as he told ABC News.

With Trump’s announcement, some have already started to throw out possible ideas for who he might pick as a vice president to run alongside him if he manages to secure the Republican nomination.

Some have suggested Majorie Taylor Greene, a Republican representative from Georgia, Syracuse.com reported.

The New York Times Magazine writer Robert Draper pointed out that MTG’s loyalty to Trump might make her stand out, the Daily Beast reported.

“[S]he has been unflaggingly loyal to Trump throughout. What is Trump concerned about most of all in a VP after the Mike Pence experience? Loyalty. He knows that if he needs someone to fight for him to overturn a presidential election. He has every reason to expect that Greene would be by his side and would be his proximate warrior,” Draper said.

Iowa’s Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, who just became the head of the Republican Governors Association, has also been suggested as a viable option for Trump, the Conservative Brief reported.

Bob Vander Plaats, CEO of The Family Leader, a conservative Christian organization that has had connections with Trump and other major Republican figures, said last year that Reynolds would make a great running mate for Trump, The Cedar Rapids Gazette reported.

Kari Lake, who ran for governor in Arizona, has also been floated as a possible candidate, and even visited Trump in Florida this week, in the midst of her ongoing fight for the governorship of Arizona, even though the race was called for her Democratic opponent Katie Hobbs, the Wall Street Journal reported.