These 2 candidates are the most popular vice presidential picks for Trump: poll
Attendees of a major political conference were divided on who former President Donald Trump should pick as his running mate in the 2024 presidential election, but two of the potential vice presidential candidates polled highest among the competition.
The 2024 Conservative Political Action Conference, which took place at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland, last week, concluded with a straw poll asking attendees to choose their preference among a list of potential running mates for Trump. While no candidate received a clear majority among the respondents, two candidates captured a higher share of the vote than others.
Fifteen percent of respondents signaled they wanted Trump to select South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as his vice presidential pick, while another 15% preferred entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. Trump confirmed that he was considering both Noem and Ramaswamy, one of his formal rivals for the 2024 Republican nomination, in an interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham last week. If selected to join Trump on a victorious Republican ticket, Ramaswamy would become the first Hindu to serve as vice president.
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None of the other choices broke 10% support in the straw poll. The third most popular potential running mate, former Democrat congresswoman and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard, secured 9% support. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., the chair of the House Republican Conference, and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., another one of Trump’s former rivals for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, each took 8%. Like Ramaswamy, Gabbard would become the first Hindu vice president if elected.
Scott would become the first African American man to serve as vice president if a hypothetical Trump-Scott ticket won the 2024 presidential election. While Trump suggested that he would consider both Gabbard and Scott during his interview with Ingraham last week, Stefanik’s name was not floated during Trump’s interview with Ingraham last week. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., another potential running mate whose name came up during their conversation, received 7% support in the straw poll.
Like Scott, Donalds would become the first African American man to serve as vice president if elected. Kari Lake, the unsuccessful Republican gubernatorial nominee in Arizona’s 2022 election and current U.S. Senate candidate, picked up 6% support in the straw poll. Three additional potential running mates for Trump secured 5% support: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson and Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
While DeSantis’ name came up during Trump’s conversation with Ingraham, the Florida governor and former Republican presidential candidate denied that he had any interest in serving as vice president. Carson, like Scott and Donalds, would become the first African American man to win the vice presidency if he joins the ticket with a victorious Trump.
Tucker Carlson, a former Fox News opinion host, was the favorite of 4% of CPAC attendees. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., currently running for president as an independent, picked up 3% support. The other candidates listed in the straw poll each received 2% support: Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, Trump’s only remaining major rival for the Republican presidential nomination, and Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio.
With the exception of Carson and Kennedy, all of the candidates included in the straw poll are at least 10 years younger than Trump. The former president will be 78 on Election Day 2024, and should he win the election, he will be 82 by the time his second non-consecutive term expires on Jan. 20, 2029.
Besides Vance and DeSantis, all vice presidential candidates included in the straw poll are either women and/or a religious or racial minority.
In addition to asking CPAC attendees who they wanted Trump to pick as his vice presidential nominee, the straw poll asked respondents who they supported in the lingering contest between Trump and Haley.
Unsurprisingly, Trump won by an overwhelming margin, capturing 94% support to Haley’s 5%. The RealClearPolitics average of polls taken between Jan. 31 and Feb. 22 shows Trump leading by a similarly large margin among Republican primary voters. Specifically, 77.3% of Republican voters prefer Trump, while 15.1% plan on supporting Haley.
The 2024 presidential election is now slightly more than eight months away. The winner of the Republican presidential primary is expected to face Democrat Joe Biden in November’s general election. The RealClearPolitics average of polls taken between Jan. 29 and Feb. 22 examining voters’ preferences ahead of the election shows Trump leading Biden by 2.1 percentage points. Meanwhile, the RealClearPolitics average of polls conducted between Jan. 17 and Feb. 19 shows Haley beating Biden by 4.9 percentage points.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
