House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) did not rule out the possibility of being Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential running mate and stressed that she would be honored to serve in the Trump White House should he win a second term.
“Well, I, of course, would be honored to serve in any capacity in a Trump administration. I’m proud to be the first member of Congress to endorse his reelection. I’m proud to be a strong supporter of President Trump, and he’s going to win this November,” Stefanik told NBC News’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.”
Stefanik would not say whether she has discussed the possibility of being Trump’s vice presidential pick with the former president, saying instead that the focus is on winning.
“I’m not going to get into the content of my conversation with President Trump. I talk to him frequently. We’ve been focused on winning,” Stefanik said. “There’s so much work to do as the House Republican Conference chair, as the representative for New York’s 21st congressional district.”
“We need to make sure that President Trump is in the strongest position to win in the general election. That’s what I’ve been focused on, and that’s what I’m going to remain focused on,” she added.
Stefanik reiterated that she would be “honored to serve in the next Trump administration,” when pressed again for a clearer answer on whether she would accept the hypothetical offer, adding, “But I’m focused on doing my job right now, which is a really important role as the conference chair and as, most importantly, the representative for the people of New York 21.”
Trump, the leading Republican candidate for president, has publicly entertained the possibility of selecting a woman to be his running mate in 2024.
Stefanik, as chair of the Republican conference in the House, has been in charge of messaging for the House GOP. In recent years, she has become one of the former president’s staunchest defenders on Capitol Hill.