The delegates to the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, have officially nominated President Donald Trump (R) for reelection as President of the United States. Votes were cast in person and remotely, and only a limited number of delegates were physically present due to the COVID-19 epidemic. Trump will stand in the November general election against the Democratic nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden (D).
Trump has been the presumptive Republican nominee since securing a majority of pledged party convention delegates in March. He faced no serious national competition for the party nomination, and today’s convention vote makes his nomination official. He is joined on the Republican ticket by his running mate, Vice President Mike Pence (R).
Before his election to the presidency, Trump served as the chairman and president of The Trump Organization, a ninety-seven year old conglomerate with interests in—among other things—real estate, investing, and property management. It is composed of more than five hundred subsidiaries, the majority of which are named for Trump. One of those subsidiaries is the television production company that produced The Apprentice for NBC, which starred Trump from 2004 to 2015. Before the 2016 election, Forbes Magazine estimated that Trump’s net worth was about $4.5 billion.
Trump—a brash, center-left outsider who never held elective office before becoming president—has upended many American political norms. On some issues, especially the right to life and self defense rights, he shifted firmly in line with Republican Party orthodoxy during his campaign and presidency. On others—like trade, foreign policy, and scope of government—he remains out of step with many traditional conservatives, especially those who lean libertarian.
In December 2019, Trump was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in connection with an alleged attempt to enlist foreign interference in the 2020 presidential election. He was acquitted by the U.S. Senate in February.
The Republican Party is the last of the three ‘fifty-state’ parties to officially select its presidential and vice presidential nominees. The Libertarian Party selected its nominees at the Libertarian Nominating Convention held online in May. The Democratic Party selected its nominees at the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, last week.