Donald Trump has narrowed down his search for a running mate and is focused on four potential vice president candidates, all of whom are men, according to a report.
Trump, who was historically convicted of 34 felony charges in New York last week, has recently received vetting material from some of the candidates, sources told NBC News.
The source told the outlet that the search is concentrating on North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum and US Senators Marco Rubio of Florida, Tim Scott of South Carolina, and JD Vance of Ohio.
Another insider told NBC News that it was down to a three-way battle between Burgum, Rubio, and Vance.
The outlet stated it is not known which of the potential running mates has been asked to provide vetting material to the campaign.
Trump has said little about what he is looking for in a running mate but has spoken positively about several names. Pundits have speculated that he wants someone loyal, who can raise money and does well on television.
At a May Mar-a-Lago gathering, Trump had a closed-door furndraiser featuring many vice president contenders. The next day, several were out campaigning for Trump.
“This weekend, we had 15 people. … They’re all out there campaigning,” Trump told Spectrum News 1 in Wisconsin days later, according to the Associated Press. “It might actually be more effective this way because, you know, every one of them thinks they could be chosen, which I guess possibly is so.”
Oddsmakers have listed Scott as the favorite, followed by Burgum, Vance and then Rubio.
Trump became the first president in US history to be prosecuted when his hush money trial got underway in Manhattan on April 15.
He was convicted by the New York jury on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to adult film actor Stormy Daniels.
Trump is set to be sentenced in New York on July 11, just four days before he becomes the official Republican nominee for president at the GOP convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The one-term president has said he will likely not decide on his running mate until closer to the convention.
Mike Pence was nominated by Trump just days before the party’s 2016 convention in Cleveland.
Other names to be considered include South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, Representatives Elise Stefanik of New York and Byron Donalds of Florida, and Ben Carson, who served in Trump’s cabinet as Housing and Urban Development Secretary.
Noem was seen as a strong candidate until she published her autobiography in which she recounted shooting her dog Cricket to death and dumping the animal’s body in a gravel pit.
The Independent has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.
