Former President Donald Trump name-dropped Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., as a potential running mate pick Thursday—but their joint Florida residencies would likely make it a nonstarter under the 14th Amendment.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump listens as Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) speaks during a rally at the ... [+]
Trump mentioned Rubio, along with Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., and his former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson when asked who he would choose as his running mate Thursday.
If Rubio were to join Trump’s ticket, they would have to find a workaround to the 12th Amendment, which prohibits electors from voting for a vice president and president who are both from their state.
Rubio or Trump could switch their residency, as former Vice President Dick Cheney did days before former President George W. Bush tapped him as his running mate, though doing so could be particularly difficult for Rubio given he holds federal office in Florida, Florida Atlantic University political science professor Ken Wagner told the Miami Herald.
If Rubio were to run on Trump’s ticket, and Trump went on to win the November election, they may not even need Florida’s 30 electors to secure the 270 needed to clinch the White House if they win by a wide enough margin—Trump won 232 electors in 2020, compared to Biden’s 306.
Florida electors could also vote for only Trump, but not Rubio, or vice versa—if the vice president failed to secure enough electoral votes needed to win, the decision would go to the Senate, and if the president fell short, the House would decide, Politifact noted.
Another possible option would be a changing Florida law to allow the state Republican Party to nominate a slate of electors who are not from Florida, University of Virginia constitutional law scholar John Harrison suggested to Politifact.
Rubio—whose name first emerged as a possible VP contender in a March—has said it would be an “honor” to serve as Trump’s running mate, but has acknowledged the 12th Amendment problem, telling Fox News in January “we’re both from the same state, so that’s probably not going to work.”
Trump said Thursday he would announce his VP pick at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July.
Trump has made no indications in public, or reportedly in private, about who he’s leaning toward for VP. In addition to the four names he mentioned Thursday, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., are also at the top of Trump’s list, the New York Times reported Friday, citing anonymous sources familiar with Trump’s thinking. Trump mentioned Rubio, who would be the first Latino on a major party’s presidential ticket, as he was campaigning in the Bronx in an appeal to Latino voters who have changed their support from President Joe Biden.
A less likely Trump running mate option, also from Florida, is Gov. Ron DeSantis, who raised speculation that he was in the mix for VP when he met with Trump in Miami in April, though the meeting was reportedly about fundraising and burying the hatchet after a bruising primary battle.
Trump Will Announce VP Pick At July RNC—He's Already Name-Dropped These 4 (Forbes)