CNN
—
The day before the deadline for Donald Trump to choose his running mate, and after months of private discussions with aides, the former president got a call from a new voice.
That man, Tesla billionaire Elon Musk, was one of several people who urged Trump at the last moment to choose Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance.
On Monday, Trump finally announced his choice: Vance would be his running mate.
Trump's selection of Vance, a freshman senator from the Midwest half his age, illustrates the former president's showman's instincts and chronic indecision: a drawn-out audition process reminiscent of Trump's time as host of “The Apprentice.” There was a litany of rumors started by Trump himself; vocal behind-the-scenes campaign factions; a secretive vetting process that kept candidates in the dark for weeks; and a tantalizing surprise announcement at the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Trump announced the decision on his platform, Truth Social, on Monday afternoon, telling his followers that Vance was “the best person” for the role – a information he had given Vance himself just minutes earlier, according to people familiar with the call.
“He just said, 'Look, I've got to save this country, and I think you're the person that's going to help me in the best way possible,'” Vance told Fox News in his first interview after being formally nominated as the Republican vice presidential nominee. “'You're going to help me govern the country. You're going to help me win. You're going to help me in Pennsylvania, Michigan, some of the Midwest states.'”
The Trump-Vance marriage of convenience was not a sudden decision: When Trump was running for the Republican nomination earlier this year, Vance wasn't even approached by the Trump campaign about possibly joining the nomination.
But once Trump won the election and the jockeying for a running mate began, Vance's team started hearing his name. Trump, known for mentioning himself at dinners with donors and allies, was one of the early catalysts of intrigue around Vance. Vance's team first found out that Trump was officially considering Vance when they received vetting papers for the running mate in early June.
The relationship blossomed over the spring and summer as the two men attended campaign events and private fundraisers together in California, where Mr. Vance, a former venture capitalist, helped Mr. Trump connect with wealthy tech entrepreneurs, including Mr. Vance's close friend, prominent tech investor David Sachs.
The final meeting before Monday's decision took place on Saturday at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, a source familiar with the meeting told CNN, just hours before the former president flew to Butler, Pennsylvania, for a rally that would end in an assassination attempt. A source familiar with the meeting described their time together as “his final interview before he gets the job.”
Vance left Palm Beach feeling confident about his chances but unsure whether he would be nominated, according to sources. Meanwhile, Trump has been in public and private negotiations with other candidates, including North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, both of whom met with the former president last week.
Behind-the-scenes lobbying of Burgum and Rubio continued until the final hours, when Trump was fielding calls from people urging him to consider other candidates, including Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and Governor Glenn Youngkin of Virginia. Multiple sources told CNN that Trump was so unsure of his nominee choice in the final 24 hours that even his closest aides were left guessing what his final choice might be.
The constant phone calls reflect a selection process that remained vacillating after he chose Mike Pence in 2016. During the call when he learned Pence would serve as the Republican candidate, Trump never formally offered the Indiana governor the job, only hinting at a co-candidate.
With it becoming clear that Rubio and Burgum might not make the cut, several Republican donors have argued in recent days that Youngkin should be Trump's nominee. Some donors did not want Vance to be the nominee and were pushing for someone other than him.
But there were also powerful voices supporting Vance, including Donald Trump Jr., the former president's eldest son, close friend and avowed supporter, and former Trump senior adviser Steve Bannon, who had praised the Ohio senator as the best possible successor to Trump's MAGA movement until shortly before Vance went to prison earlier this month.
Vance also had the backing of conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, whose former boss, Fox News mogul Rupert Murdoch, lobbied Trump directly to choose Burgum, while his one-time prime-time Fox News pal Sean Hannity campaigned for Rubio.
Trump Jr., Bannon and Carlson were all highly influential figures as pioneers of the former president's MAGA movement and prominent influencers among right-wing supporters. They argued that Vance not only had the strongest ties to Trump, but would also be the most loyal if selected for the former president's inner circle, according to multiple sources familiar with the discussions.
They also argued that Mr. Vance, who grew up in a poor Rust Belt town north of Cincinnati, could appeal to working-class voters who are crucial to winning key battleground states in November, and that his wife, Usha Chirukuri Vance, the daughter of Indian immigrants, could also appeal to minority voters, the sources said.
Sachs and Steve Witkoff, a real estate investor and close friend of Trump, also belatedly endorsed Vance directly. Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana have also reached out.
Trump Jr. also made a last-minute push for Vance after his father was undecided, urging his father to choose the Ohio Republican during a late-night dinner at Mar-a-Lago, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
Trump Jr. told CNN that he told his father at the dinner: “Look, I've seen my father on TV. I've seen him make his case against the Democratic Party. I don't think there's anybody more eloquent than my father, and I think his background and his history has really helped me in a lot of situations that I'm going to need it to be.”
But even Trump's son said he was unaware of the post before it was made public on Truth Social — a startling secret that was kept secret until the first day of the convention.
It wasn't that long ago that Vance considered himself a “Never Trumper.” As Trump began to rise within the Republican Party, Vance, then known as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” criticized the reality-TV star-turned-politician, wondering in private messages whether Trump was “an American Hitler.” In 2016, he said he would vote third party.
“I can't stand Trump,” Vance told NPR in an interview at the time. “I think he's toxic and he's leading the white working class to a very dark place.”
After the “Access Hollywood” tape surfaced in which Trump boasted about being able to grope women, Vance wrote in a now-deleted social media post: “Fellow Christians, you are all watching us. May the Lord help us as we apologize for this man.”
Democrats have repeated such comments in recent weeks, showing Trump how difficult it will be to elect someone as vocal as his former foe. But Vance has since distanced himself from them, telling CNN's Dana Bash in May, “I was wrong about him.”
“I didn't think he'd be a good president,” Vance said, “and I'm so proud to have been proven wrong. That's one of the reasons I'm working so hard to get him elected.”
Vance's pivot was a smart political move: He entered the Ohio primary for an open Senate seat as a staunch supporter of the former president, who ultimately backed him over other conservative candidates. Vance went on to win the 2022 primary and general election.
“I wish the Senate race was just as easy,” one Pennsylvania delegate quipped when Vance accepted his party's nomination on Monday.
And therein lies the biggest risk in Trump choosing Vance as his running mate: He is relatively unproven and has little experience: He won his Senate seat by 6 points two years ago, but lost by 19 points to Republican Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio, who was on the same slate.
But Mr. Trump has grown increasingly comfortable with Mr. Vance, 39, as he has watched him defend himself on television. A Yale graduate and gifted speaker, Mr. Vance has proven himself a clear, effective communicator, particularly at fending off tough questions about the former president's legal troubles.
The other contenders for the vice presidential spot also had their flaws. Trump thought Burgum had the right looks for the role, but many around him didn't think the relatively unknown former software executive from North Dakota had the national appeal. Trump, meanwhile, closed the door to Rubio over concerns about the pair living together in Florida. Trump has long feared the legal system would work against him, a concern that has resonated with him in recent days, even as Rubio's allies insisted it would be fine for him to relocate elsewhere.
In the end, Trump's relationship with Vance won out.
“[Trump]correctly stated that we've had a very close relationship for a long time, particularly since I endorsed you in 2022,” Vance said in an interview with Fox News. “I would not have won that campaign without Donald Trump's endorsement. The president's trust at the time and his working relationship since then is something I value very highly.”
CNN's Kristen Holmes and Kit Maher contributed to this report.
