New York — Former Vice President Mike Pence will not support Trump in 2024. “It should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year,” Pence told Fox News Channel Friday, marking his first appearance since the former president became the GOP nominee. Pence fought against Trump for their party's nomination last year but backed out before voting.
Pence became the latest top Trump administration official to oppose Trump's reelection. While most GOP members of Congress and administration support Trump, a vociferous minority has opposed him
Pence, who had long been one of Trump's most devoted defenders, split with his two-time running mate by declining to join Trump's unlawful plan to stay in office after losing the 2020 election. On Jan. 6, 2021, Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to disrupt Joe Biden's certification, forcing Pence to retreat to a Senate loading dock as protestors yelled, “Hang Mike Pence!”
Pence has to commit to support the Republican nominee to attend the primary debates. In the first debate in Milwaukee, Pence was one of the candidates who raised their hands when asked if they would support Trump if convicted in one of his four felony indictments. However, Pence had expressed severe concerns about Trump's conduct and policies.
“I believe anyone that puts themselves over the Constitution should never be president of the United States and anyone who asks someone else to put them over the Constitution should never be president again,” he stated during his campaign launch. He warned about the party's opposition to Ukraine aid and urged Republicans to reject Trump and his supporters' “siren song of populism” as the campaign continued.
On Fox's “The Story with Martha MacCallum,” Pence said he was “incredibly proud” of his and Trump's record in office, but added, “During my presidential campaign I made it clear that there were profound differences between me and President Trump on a range of issues, and not just our difference on my Constitutional duties that I exercised on January the 6th
As I've watched his candidacy unfold, I've seen him abandon our national debt commitment. I’ve seen him starting to move away from a commitment to the sanctity of human life,” he said, referencing Trump’s “reversal on getting tough on China and supporting our administration’s effort to force” the sale of TikTok.
In each of these areas, Donald Trump is pursuing and expressing an agenda that contradicts the conservative agenda we ruled on for four years. Therefore, I cannot back Donald Trump in this campaign," he said. “I’m going to keep my vote to myself,” Pence stated, adding he wouldn’t vote for Biden.
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