Who is Donald Trump’s running mate, J.D Vance?

Former United States President Donald Trump days after an assassination attempt on his life has reignited his 2024 Presidential election bid by naming his running mate. Trump who arrived in Milwaukee on Monday ahead of the GOP Convention 2024 where he will be confirmed as the Republican candidate announced J.D Vance as his running mate.

He took to Truth Social to share the big news on Monday, announcing his one-time critic as the man to partner with him in the next election. His decision means Mike Pence, who served as Vice president under Donald Trump between 2016 and 2020 will not return to the White House if the Republicans win the elections.

“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,” Trump announced via Truth Social, the Associated Press reported.

But who is J.D. Vance?

J.D Vance, born James Donald Bowman rose to prominence in 2016 when he published his memoir, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis. The widely successful book was adapted into a film in 2020 and made available on Netflix.

The 39-year-old Ohio senator was born in Middletown, Ohio. He graduated from Middletown High School in 2003 and proceeded to enlist in the United States Marine Corps. He was deployed to Iraq. After his service in Iraq, he enrolled at the Ohio State University where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts in politics and philosophy.

J.D. Vance then proceeded to Yale Law School to pursue law studies. It was at Yale that his professor encouraged him to write his memoir. Having worked for politicians including Senators Bob Schuler and John Coryn, Vance decided to contest for the Ohio Senate in 2022.

When he made his intentions clear to run for the Senate seat vacated by Democrat Rob Portman in 2021, he got support from many influential people including Peter Thiel whom he worked for previously. He won the Republican primary by 32% before going on to beat Democrat candidate Tim Ryan by 53% to 47% in the main election on November 8, 2022.

What are J.D. Vance’s political views?

J.D. Vance is a staunch conservative and has previously opposed Donald Trump. In one of his comments in 2016 in a Facebook message to an associate, he said he was unsure about Trump.”I go back and forth between thinking Trump is a cynical asshole like Nixon who wouldn’t be that bad (and might even prove useful) or that he’s America’s Hitler,” Reuters reported.

Before the 2016 election, he said he contemplated voting for Hillary Clinton because he was “definitely not” voting for Trump. Though he once described himself as a “Never Trump”, he later transformed to become of one Trump’s key supporters.

He said in a statement Vance praised Trump’s many “successes” while in office as President. “I’m proud to be one of his strongest supporters in the Senate today and I’m going to do everything in my power to ensure President Trump wins in November – the survival of America depends on it.”

In a debate against Tim Ryan before the November 2022 election, he was asked if he felt Trump who faced multiple criminal charges had done something. “I have seen nothing that suggests the president of the United States should be thrown in prison,” he stated.

Vance is against abortion and said he thinks abortions after 15 weeks should be banned. He also said he feels states should be able to make their laws about abortion while adding that “some minimum national standard is fine with me.”

On LGBTQ rights, he said marriage is between one man and one woman while adding that he is not willing to break families. “I believe that marriage is between one man and one woman, but I don’t think the gay marriage issue is alive right now. I’m not one of these guys who’s looking to try to take people’s families and rip them apart.”