Who would Trump choose as vice president? Here's a list of potential candidates

WASHINGTON — Though the Republican presidential primaries and caucuses haven't started yet, former President Donald Trump’s commanding lead in the polls has already spurred debate over potential running mates.

Some names being floated are lawmakers who’ve said in interviews they would be interested in the job. Other names are generated when Trump meets with a high-profile supporter, which happened this week when he was spotted at Mar-a-Lago with Rep, Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., according to aides.

But his aides add that stories about an array of possible appointments − from running mate to White House chief of staff − are premature at best.

"Second term policy priorities and staffing decisions will not - in no uncertain terms - be led by anonymous or thinly sourced speculation in mainstream media news stories,” the Trump campaign said in a statement. "President Trump is solely focused on winning the Republican nomination for president."

Trump himself said in an interview with NBC in September that he hasn’t thought too much about the role but added he “likes the concept” of a woman as vice president.

"We're going to choose the best person," he said.

Either way, numerous political experts said loyalty would be a prime consideration for Trump as he chooses his running mate. And some of his supporters being floated as a running mate could very well end up on Trump’s ticket.

Here’s a look at some potential contenders.

Tim Scott

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who dropped out of the presidential race last month, was floated as a potential running mate early on in the primary race. Unlike some of his rivals, the lawmaker did not criticize Trump directly when he was on the campaign trail.

Scott worked on opportunity zones − a bipartisan initiative − in Trump's 2017 tax cut legislation. He is also 58 and Black, which would be key for Trump as he seeks to expand his coalition of supporters.

Trump was asked on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures" whether he would choose Scott as a running mate in July, and said he thinks Scott is a “very good guy” and talented. 

“We did opportunity zones together. It's never been talked about. It's one of the most successful economic development things ever done in this country. And Tim is very good,” Trump said. “I mean, I could see Tim doing something with the administration.”

Though Scott said he wouldn’t endorse anyone for the primary, he did defend Trump’s economic record and acknowledged his poll numbers in an interview with CNBC earlier this month.

Nikki Haley

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has argued that former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley would be a good pick for Trump’s vice president as she would pull independent voters to his circle of supporters.

Haley, 51, worked in the Trump administration as an ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 to 2018, where she supported U.S. relations with Israel and led the initiative to pull the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement on climate change. As a woman of color, she would diversify Trump’s ticket.

"A large gender gap exists in his current polling and attempting to reach out to more moderate suburban female voters in swing states will be crucially important in the general election,” said Aaron Kall, an elections expert at the University of Michigan. “Given the advanced ages of Trump and Biden, selecting a younger candidate could help alleviate any concerns over health.”

Having Haley on Trump’s ticket might also increase his chances of beating Biden. Numerous polls have found that Haley has a higher chance of winning against Biden in a hypothetical matchup than other Republican candidates.

But when asked by a voter in Iowa this month whether she would consider being Trump’s number two, she made clear she wouldn’t accept the position.

“I don't play for second," she said. "I've never played for second my entire life."

The two have also battled on the campaign trail. Haley said that Trump is not the right president for the country in 2024. The Trump campaign has called Haley "birdbrain," and sent a birdcage and bird food to her hotel room in October to mock her.

Kristi Noem

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, one of Trump’s fiercest allies, is also being floated after she endorsed the former president at an event in September. Trump said in an interview with NBC that same month he has his eye on Noem as a potential running mate.

“I think she’s fantastic. She’s been a great governor. She gave me a very full-throated endorsement - a beautiful endorsement actually,” Trump said. “And, you know, it’s been a very good state for me and certainly she’d be one of the people I’d consider.”

Noem, 52, has also made clear she is interested in the position, saying in an interview with Newmax in September she would consider the role “in a heartbeat.”

She’s criticized Trump’s criminal indictments and the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling to disqualify Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot this week. She’s also passed anti-abortion and pro-Second Amendment policies. Before she was governor, Noem served in Congress where she helped pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 − key legislation under the Trump administration.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, 41, is another lawmaker Trump could potentially choose. Sanders endorsed Trump at a rally in Miami, Florida, last month, calling him “my former boss, my friend, and everybody’s favorite president.”

Sanders served as the White House press secretary in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019, advising him on personnel, policy and communications strategy, according to her website. When Sanders stepped down from her position, Trump acknowledged in a news conference that the pair have been through a lot together and that she did an incredible job.

“She’s tough and she’s good,” Trump said.

If 2024 does end up being a match between President Joe Biden and Trump, Sanders would serve as a key player for Trump. She delivered a combative response against Biden when he delivered his State of the Union address in February, saying Biden’s weakness puts the nation and world at risk. 

However, allegations that her office illegally altered public records could make a comeback if she ends up on the ticket.

Ben Carson

Ben Carson, who served as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Trump administration, said he would be willing to serve as Trump’s running mate when the former president ran in 2016.

Ultimately, Trump chose former Vice President Mike Pence for the spot. But Carson’s name is now being floated again after the retired neurosurgeon endorsed him for the 2024 race.

If Carson were chosen however, it is unclear whether he would take the spot.

When Carson announced he would leave after Trump’s first term, he was pressed in a 2019 Newsmax interview on whether he would be interested in serving in a second Trump administration. Carson said, “I would be interested in returning to the private sector, because I think you have just as much influence — maybe more — there.”

Marjorie Taylor Greene

Staunch Trump supporter Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., told the Atlanta-Journal Constitution in August that it would be an “honor” if she was chosen for the vice president spot and would consider it “very, very heavily.”

She’s spoken at numerous Trump campaign events and was one of the 147 Republicans who voted to decertify the 2020 election results.

Greene also supports an impeachment inquiry against Biden - joining other Republican lawmakers in alleging Biden was involved in his family's business dealings as vice president - and accused him of treason, while defending Trump against his indictments. 

However, Greene’s far-right stances and rhetoric might not bode well for Trump if he is seeking to attract moderate Republicans to his base.

Elise Stefanik

Rumors about Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., being a possible running mate for Trump have also been floated, as she is one of the former president’s fiercest allies.

She endorsed Trump last year before he announced he was running. The endorsement came after the midterm elections, when some Republicans were blaming him for failing to generate a red wave, according to The Associated Press. 

Stefanik has also criticized his indictments and filed ethics complaints with judges who have overseen cases related to the former president.

She is 39 and could appeal to younger women looking to back the former president. However, she is from New York, which has voted blue in recent presidential elections.

"Electoral considerations are often at play in Vice-Presidential selections, so someone who could help Republicans flip a state like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada, Georgia, or Arizona could be especially helpful," Kall previously told USA TODAY.

Kari Lake

Though former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake launched a Senate bid in October, there's some speculation that she could land higher office as Trump’s potential running mate. 

Lake, 54, has defended Trump against his criminal indictments and spread allegations that the 2020 election was stolen - despite evidence to the contrary.

She came out first in a poll conducted by the Conservative Political Action Conference in March that asked voters who they would like to see as the Republican candidate for vice president. Lake won 20% of the vote, topping the other candidates on the list.

However, she did lose the governor’s race in the midterms last year which could affect whether she has enough political standing to pull in more supporters to Trump’s circle.

Vivek Ramaswamy

Though businessman and self-proclaimed outsider Vivek Ramaswamy is competing for the Republican nomination, he has defended Trump numerous times on the campaign trail and acknowledged Trump was the best president of the 21st century.

Trump has also taken notice of Ramaswamy’s efforts, crowning him the winner of the first Republican debate in August. 

"He's a very, very, very intelligent person. He's got good energy, and he could be some form of something. I tell you, I think he'd be very good,” Trump said in August when asked by conservative host Glenn Beck what he thought of Ramaswamy as vice president.

However, Ramaswamy has no political experience, and he said he wasn't interested in playing for second place in an interview.

“Donald Trump and I share something in common and that is that neither of us would do well in a number 2 position,” he said on Fox News in August.