JD Vance announced as Trump’s running mate for US election in shocking reveal
Donald Trump has announced an Ohio senator who once compared him to Hitler as his running mate for November’s US election.
JD Vance, a 39-year-old former venture capitalist, will become vice president if Mr Trump wins November’s election.
The former president made the announcement on his social network, Truth Social.
Ohio-born Mr Vance, a New York Times best-selling author, entered into the world of venture capitalism after graduating from Yale Law School.
The US Marines veteran came to prominence in 2016 with his memoir Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis – which detailed his upbringing and socioeconomic problems in Ohio.
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Trump named as Republican presidential nominee
JD Vance. Pic: AP
Trump is currently set to go up against incumbent Democrat President Joe Biden in the race for the White House.
Mr Vance once described himself as a “never Trumper” and was harshly critical of him after his 2016 election win – describing him as an “idiot” and “America’s Hitler”.
However, he has since become a reliable supporter, even attending court in New York to support the former president at his hush money trial.
He is aligned with Mr Trump’s populist mindset and will likely be palatable to the MAGA base – perhaps even as a potential successor one day.
Announcing Mr Vance as his running mate, Mr Trump said on his Truth Social platform: “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.”
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The former president highlighted how Mr Vance “honourably served” in the Marines, before adding that he will now be “strongly focussed on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American workers and farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond”.
Mr Trump added that Mr Vance will do “everything he can to help me MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN”.
The Republican National Convention kicked off this week, with delegates and officials descending on Wisconsin after Trump survived Saturday’s assassination attempt.
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