His candidacy was an open secret. It is now official. Mike Pence, the former Vice President of the United States, filed for the White House on Monday, June 5, according to documents released by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). So there will be a duel with his ex-boss Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican primaries.
He will formalize his candidacy on Wednesday, June 7, his 64th birthday, with a video, then a meeting in Des Moines, Iowa and will end the day on a CNN set, according to his relatives. This candidacy is therefore added to all those already announced. For the Republicans, a dozen contenders hope to be elected, but are all far behind, in the polls, by the former president.
Evangelical Christian, fierce opponent of abortion, Mike Pence had helped Donald Trump conquer the religious right by being his running mate during the 2016 presidential campaign. After years of unwavering loyalty, he changed his tone following the assault on the Capitol that rocked American democracy on January 6, 2021.
That day, Mike Pence led, as vice president, the session in Congress, during which the elected officials had to certify the victory of Joe Biden in the presidential election of 2020. Although he only has a role formal, Donald Trump had insisted that he refuse to validate the election of the Democrat. The former governor of Indiana did not comply, which earned him strong enmity among the billionaire's supporters. Forced into the Capitol, some had called to "hang" Mike Pence, who had to hide in haste.
He has since ruled that the president's words were "irresponsible" and "endangered" him.
The split between the two men jeopardizes the chances of Mike Pence, whom many activists loyal to Donald Trump continue to consider a "traitor". The man with the wise white wick peaks around 3.8% of voting intentions, far behind the former president (53.2%), according to the average of the latest polls carried out by the RealClearPolitics site.
However, he has been preparing his candidacy for months. After releasing a book titled So Help Me God (untranslated), the former radio host criss-crossed the country, speaking out in states that could make a difference in the Republican primaries.
