Donald Trump’s search for a running mate has reached a more intensive phase, with his campaign requesting documents from at least eight contenders, half of whom are U.S. senators, according to people familiar with the process.
The potential candidates who have received requests for paperwork include: Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.); North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum; Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.); and former secretary of housing and urban development Ben Carson, according to people familiar with the search, who like others interviewed for this article spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. It’s unknown what documentation the campaign has specifically requested.
In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly talked about Rubio, Vance and Burgum, according to people familiar with his remarks. Still, even as the process ramps up, he told an ally in the past week that he is in no hurry to make the announcement and could even push it to the week of the convention.
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The list offers a window into Trump’s priorities for a running mate: The potential candidates all have experience in government and have remained loyal to the former president. The focus on several senators and other members of Congress also highlights Trump’s reshaping of Capitol Hill, where Republicans have largely lined up behind his candidacy and pushed out an older guard of Trump critics.
The competition has been heating up in recent weeks as the prospective candidates and their allies try to one-up each other to demonstrate that they are strong fundraisers, effective ambassadors for his campaign and loyal defenders, even when it comes to his false claims of election interference.
In a recent Newsmax interview, Trump said: “We have some unbelievable people” being considered.
“I thought Tim Scott didn’t run as good of a race as he’s capable of running for himself, but as a surrogate for me, he’s unbelievable,” Trump said. “Governor Burgum from North Dakota has been incredible. Marco Rubio has been great. J.D. Vance has been great. We’ve had so many great people out there — Ben Carson.”
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Vance is traveling with the former president Thursday as he heads to Arizona and then California for fundraisers. Vance organized a fundraiser in San Francisco that is being co-hosted by venture capitalist David Sacks, according to a person familiar with the event. Burgum and Scott will also be attending, according to a person familiar with the attendees.
Vance spoke to reporters in the back of the Phoenix megachurch auditorium where Trump was expected to take the stage Thursday afternoon, saying he had discussed the running-mate search with campaign staff, but not Trump himself. Vance said the discussion covered “simple stuff” — such as “Are you interested?” and “What do you think about the race?” — before he declined to say what he might add to Trump’s ticket.
“I’ll let Donald Trump make that decision,” he said.
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Burgum is viewed by some Trump allies as trying too hard, but Trump seems to have genuine personal chemistry with him, according to people familiar with the matter. A Trump adviser said the president maintains a close relationship with Burgum and has taken notice of his fundraising efforts. Rubio, meanwhile, is liked by many of Trump’s Florida-based advisers, but there is the “residency question,” as Trump says. Both Rubio and Trump are Florida residents, which could be an issue due to electoral college complications.
In an interview this week, Rubio said he’s only heard about his potential status as Trump’s running mate from the media. When asked if he’d accept an offer to be Trump’s vice president, Rubio responded, “That’s presumptuous. I’m not going to speculate on something that’s never happened.”
Trump is known for changing his mind and making decisions that have sometimes surprised even his own advisers, adding a degree of uncertainty to the next phase of the search. He and his advisers are looking for the most significant liabilities in the candidates, according to one person in touch with the campaign who described an at-times unorthodox process that is the “Trump version of diligence on different contenders.”
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At a recent fundraiser, one donor appealed to Trump to pick his former rival Nikki Haley, saying that she would help with female voters and appeal to the public on abortion — and that she would prove useful against Vice President Harris, according to attendees.
“She’s a very disloyal person,” Trump said, according to attendees. He then complained that she backed Marco Rubio in 2016 even after he asked for her endorsem*nt and that she had been disloyal repeatedly to him since. “You have to like the person you’re running with, and I don’t like her. I don’t like her.”
Trump said he was not worried about her voters leaving him, according to attendees. “All those people are going to come vote for us anyway. Who are they going to vote for? … I think if I picked Nikki Haley, it would look like such a weak decision.”
On Thursday, the Republican National Committee sent an email with the subject line: “My next Vice President will be …” It included a short survey that said, “My next vice president will be decided by you!” No specific contenders were mentioned.
Josh Dawsey, Hannah Knowles, Michael Scherer and Dylan Wells contributed to this report.
