Trump selects Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as running mate

MILWAUKEE, Wi. — Former President Donald Trump has announced Ohio senator J.D. Vance as his running mate in the 2024 presidential election just days after an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania.

Trump announced on Monday in a post on Truth Social that Vance is his pick for vice president. The announcement was made during the first day of the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Vance, a former critic of Trump’s who once called him “America’s Hitler,” is from Middletown, Ohio, and served in the Marine Corps from 2003 to 2007.

Vance has served as United States senator from Ohio since 2023 after rising to fame with the 2016 release of his best-selling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy.”

Trump said in his post that Vance “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,” for the rest of the campaign.

Shortly after the announcement, Trump was announced as the official nominee of the Republican Party for the 2024 election.

Isabelle Charboneau is a fourth-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email ijc5186@psu.edu.