Kristi Noem, Katie Britt, Kari Lake, and Nikki Haley were all once seen as top contenders in Trump’s veepstakes. Just a few months later, they all seem to have blown their shot.
A few short months ago, the conventional wisdom emanating from Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign seemed to be that the former president was looking for a female to join him as his running mate, seemingly in an attempt to soften his image and recapture some of the suburban women that polls show have soured on him recently.
But, following a series of scandals and disagreements that have roiled the race to be Trump’s vice presidential pick, it appears that many of the women once thought to be favorites have taken themselves out of the running, according to Semafor politics reporter Shelby Talcott, who joins The New Abnormal this week to discuss the state of the 2024 race.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem killed a puppy—then bragged about it in a book. Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) delivered an icy and widely panned State of the Union response. Arizona Senate hopeful Kari Lake just can’t seem to shut up. And one-time rival Nikki Haley hasn’t yet fallen in line behind the frontrunner after suspending her own campaign, leaving Trump fuming.
Several others’ stock has risen in recent weeks to fill the void, Talcott says: Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), Sen. Tim Scott (R-FL), North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, and the one woman who has seemingly held onto her spot on the shortlist: Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY).
“The one thing I will say is when I talk to people close to Trump and people on Trump’s campaign, there’s not universal agreement at this point,” Talcott said. “Does Donald Trump end up picking somebody because [they can bring voters to his coalition], or because he just likes that person? Personally, I think he’s leaning towards the latter.”
