Who Is Byron Donalds? 5 Things To Know About Potential Trump VP Pick

As speculation swirls around potential vice presidential picks for former President Donald Trump’s 2024 bid, Florida Republican Rep. Byron Donalds’ name continues to pop up. Known for his staunch support of Trump and his equally staunch conservative principles, Donalds has emerged as a potential VP pick.

Here are five things to know about Donalds.

1. Early Critic Turned Trump Loyalist

While Donalds was once critical of Trump, particularly regarding his protectionist trade policies and birtherism comments about President Barack Obama, he has since become one of the former president’s most ardent supporters.

Yet in 2011, he celebrated Trump’s decision not to challenge then-President Barack Obama for the White House. “Trump won’t run. Thank God!” Donalds wrote in a Facebook post in May 2011.

“Trump is a huge distraction, and cares more about himself than the country in my opinion, but I could care less about him,” Donalds wrote on Facebook April 2011 when discussing Trump’s charges that Obama’s birth certificate was fake, CNN reported.

2. Rapid Political Rise

Born and raised in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Donalds pursued a career in finance, insurance, and banking before entering Politics. He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020 before being elected to Congress in 2020, representing Florida’s 19th congressional district.

Florida’s 19th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in Southwest Florida. It includes the cities of Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel, Bonita Springs, Naples, and Marco Island, as well as unincorporated areas in Lee and Collier counties.

The district is about 70 percent white, 5 percent Black, and 19 percent Hispanic, with Hispanic being of any race, according to the Census Reporter for 2022.

3. Tea Party Roots

Donalds’ political ideology aligns with the conservative wing of the Republican Party. He was a member of the Tea Party movement and ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. He has advocated for limited government, fiscal responsibility, and free-market principles.

4. Controversial Statements

Donalds has made headlines for his controversial statements, including his assertion that he does not personally believe Joe Biden is a legitimate president, despite acknowledging him as such.

His website states, “Congressman Byron Donalds is a conservative leader who will bring the fight to the swamp creatures in Washington, DC. He’s everything the fake news media says doesn’t exist: a Trump supporting, liberty loving, pro-life, pro-2nd Amendment black man. That’s what we need to drain the swamp.”

5. Trump Surrogate and Potential VP Pick

Donalds’ steadfast support for Trump has earned him a prominent position within the GOP. Trump routinely praises Donalds during campaign rallies and has publicly thanked him for his support. He’s a frequent commentator on conservative media, with a 2023 analysis from the left-leaning Media Matters finding he appeared on Fox News weekday programs 193 times between August 2017 and October 2023.

Byron Donalds, photo via website, https://www.byrondonalds.com/