Donald Trump names Governor Kristi Noem and Senator Tim Scott as potential 2024 running mates as he unveils criteria for his next vice president
- Trump said Tim Scott and Kristi Noem are considerations for his vice president in 2024
- Rumors that he was considering working with the independent RFK Jr. were also dispelled.
Donald Trump said South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem and Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) have been shortlisted to be his running mate in the 2024 general election.
He also refuted rumors that he was Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a vice presidential candidate and said his team never contacted the independent candidates.
Speaking to Fox News host Maria Bartiromo, Trump said he won't announce who he plans to run on the 2024 ticket for “a while.”
Former President Donald Trump said he's considering Sen. Tim Scott and Gov. Kristi Noem as running mates in 2024 — but said he won't announce that for 'a while'
However, he did reveal some of the criteria he considers when looking at a new No. 2 — including knowing that the person he chooses would be a good president, if necessary.
“We have some good people in the Republican Party,” Trump said in a rare word of praise for other Republican politicians.
“I called Tim Scott and told him, 'You're a much better candidate for me than you are for yourself,'” Trump told Bartiromo during an interview that aired on Sunday Morning Futures.
He spent much of his time supporting Scott, claiming the South Carolina candidate was “subdued” during his presidential bid but became a fierce defender of the former president in recent weeks.
“Kristi Noem was an incredible fight for me,” he added of the South Dakota governor. “She said, 'I would never run against him because I can't beat him. That was a very nice thing to say.'
Noem confirmed in her own interview with Bartiromo on Sunday that she speaks frequently with Trump, but they have never directly discussed the possibilities of appearing on the ticket together in 2024.
Trump said Senator Tim Scott is a better candidate for him than he was for himself. The South Carolina senator dropped out of the 2024 race last November and endorsed Trump. Pictured: Trump and Scott appear together at a rally the night before the New Hampshire primary on January 22
He also said on Sunday: 'Kristi Noem fought incredibly for me.' Pictured: Trump and Noem appear together on September 7, 2018 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota
“Has he contacted you about the possible role of his running mate?” Bartiromo asked Noem.
“No, we talk all the time, but we've never had that conversation,” she replied. “I'm just talking about ways we can really help our country at this critical time in history.”
Surveys consistently show Scott and Noem listed as popular potential running mates for Trump.
But others on the list include Trump's former press secretary and current Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Republican House Conference Chair Elise Stefanik and former 2024 contender and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.