In this file picture, then-President Donald Trump arrives for a marketing campaign rally at Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Nov. 2, 2020, in Grand Rapids, Mich., with then-Vice President Mike Pence.

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In this file picture, then-President Donald Trump arrives for a marketing campaign rally at Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Nov. 2, 2020, in Grand Rapids, Mich., with then-Vice President Mike Pence.

Evan Vucci/AP

When June Avinger thinks about who former President Donald Trump ought to select as a operating mate, she’s strategic.

“Sarah Huckabee Sanders is one, but I don’t know, because he’s gonna need someone in a state more blue than Arkansas,” she stated, laughing at a Trump rally in February.

Nearby, Arlene Lutz hoped Trump would contemplate one in every of his former rivals for the nomination.

“I like Vivek [Ramaswamy], but I don’t know if he’s going to pick him, I don’t know who he has in mind,” she stated.

Andrea Taylor had an thought she was solely partially joking about.

“Tucker Carlson!” she exclaimed, laughing. “I know it’ll never happen. I just think it would be funny. I think it would be so funny that it would just blow people’s minds.”

Trump supporters are excited, curious, and able to again their candidate’s eventual selection — the way in which partisans are in any election yr. But that normalcy belies the truth that irrespective of who Trump chooses, distinctive — even unprecedented — circumstances encompass his operating mate choose.

Only 4 years, after which a MAGA successor?

Trump is 77, and age might merely make a successor extra essential to voters.

There’s additionally the truth that Trump can solely serve yet another time period. Supporter Andrea Taylor stated she has that in thoughts as she thinks about who the operating mate will likely be.

“He’s only got, what, four years? So whatever he chooses, hopefully will do the next four and maybe continue whatever he’s trying to fix here,” she stated.

That will get at one thing else: some voters are fascinated about how Trumpism will dwell on after Trump. To the extent that Trump is selecting an inheritor obvious, it is not solely to steer the Republican Party, however probably to steer the MAGA motion.

Veteran Republican strategist Alice Stewart thinks that is on Trump’s thoughts as nicely.

“Donald Trump is concerned about his legacy and the MAGA legacy,” she stated. “And certainly, ideally, he would prefer to have someone who not only is going to pick up the baton and run with it as his vice president, but will continue the MAGA baton into the future.”

What operating mates do and do not do

It’s straightforward to overstate the consequences of a operating mate in keeping with Christopher DeVine, a political science professor on the University of Dayton and creator of the e book Do Running Mates Matter?

Running mate picks do not typically make or break a candidate’s probabilities, he stated.

“Vice presidential candidates have this indirect effect and what I mean by that is that they shape perceptions of the presidential candidate,” he defined.

Candidates usually select operating mates as a method of creating some extent or reassuring voters a few perceived weak spot. For instance, when Barack Obama selected Joe Biden in 2008, it was seen as a strategy to present the younger senator was surrounding himself with extra skilled folks. Likewise, when Trump selected former Indiana Gov. Mike Pence in 2016, that was broadly seen as a strategy to attraction to evangelical voters and put political expertise on the ticket.

“It’s often referred to as the first presidential act, who you select for vice president” Devine stated. “And it tells the voters a lot about who you are.”

But once more, Trump is exclusive right here: voters very a lot know who Trump is and how much president he will likely be. That means Trump can concentrate on a high quality he values possibly greater than another.

Seeking loyalty (or possibly greater than loyalty)

In this file picture, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., waves whereas former President Donald Trump factors to her at his golf course in 2022, in Bedminster, N.J.

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In this file picture, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., waves whereas former President Donald Trump factors to her at his golf course in 2022, in Bedminster, N.J.

Seth Wenig/AP

According to strategist Alice Stewart, Trump’s fixation on loyalty is unquestionable.

“We all know that Donald Trump’s considerations for key positions in his administration are mainly based on loyalty over leadership, and that’s going to be a big factor that goes into his decision making process,” she predicted.

Which could also be why potential vice presidential contenders on the closely emphasised their Trump assist on the Conservative Political Action Conference final month. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem was one in every of them.

“I was one of the first people to endorse Donald J. Trump to be our next president,” she informed the group. “Last year, when everyone was asking me if I was going to consider running for president, I said no. Why would you run for president if you can’t win?”

How essential is loyalty to Trump? Consider Trump’s warnings to his final vp on January 6, when Pence licensed Joe Biden because the 2020 election winner.

“And Mike Pence, I hope you’re going to stand up for the good of our Constitution and for the good of our country,” Trump informed his crowd earlier than the violence on Capitol Hill that day. “And if you’re not, I’m going to be very disappointed in you. I will tell you right now.”

That day, members of Trump’s crowd chanted “hang Mike Pence.”

Political scientist Christopher Devine stated that if Trump is considering his previous choose whereas making his present choose, that may also make this a really uncommon presidential selection.

“In that case, I don’t think the word loyalty is really enough to capture what Donald Trump would be looking for,” he stated. “I think we’re looking at more something like fealty or servility.”

This weekend, Trump will maintain a rally in Rome, Ga., residence of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. She’s a prime Trump surrogate so possibly she’s additionally a contender.