Former Vice President Mike Pence hints at running for president in 2024 following his failure to side with former President Donald Trump during his second impeachment trial.
Speaking at a Georgetown University event on Wednesday, Pence was asked whether he would vote for Trump if the former president was the Republican nominee in 2024.
“Well, there might be somebody else I’d prefer more,” said Pence, followed by laughter and applause from the audience.
“What I can tell you is, I have every confidence that the Republican Party’s going to sort out leadership. All my focus has been on the midterm elections, and it’ll stay that way for the next 20 days, but after that, we’ll be thinking about the future — ours and the nations, and I’ll keep you posted, OK?” He continued.
This comes as Trump said in an email last week that an announcement about his 2024 plans would be coming “very soon,” adding that supporters would be “very happy” with his decision.
“Our MAGA movement is, by far, the greatest political movement in the history of our Country, because I am fighting for YOU, YOUR home, YOUR heritage, and YOUR freedom,” Trump wrote.
While Trump and Pence had a strong relationship during most of their four years in office, things changed when the then-vice president certified the Electoral College results hours after protesters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“Mike committed political suicide by not taking votes that he knew were wrong,” the former president said at the time.
Pence disagreed, saying that “Trump is wrong” and that he “had no right to overturn the election.”
Despite Pence’s confidence that he can unseat President Joe Biden in 2024, a recent poll conducted by the Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll showed that Trump would win a race against Biden. 49 percent of Republican voters who participated in the poll said that they would vote for Trump, while Florida Governor Ron DeSantis came in second place with 38 percent.
With Trump holding the support of many GOP voters, Pence doesn’t have a chance, let alone against DeSantis, who is also speculated to throw his hat into the ring in 2024.
