RNC 2024: Vice presidential selection, what Donald Trump has in mind

MILWAUKEE - Who will be former President Donald Trump’s running mate? 

There's a good chance we won't find out until the Republican Party is in Milwaukee for the 2024 Republican National Convention.

But that's not when, and how, the rounding out of the ticket typically happens. At least not in recent history.

For the last nearly four decades, each party's presidential ticket, Republican and Democrat, has been a done deal by the time the political conventions start. There are no more surprises; no more guessing games.

"There’s kind of different reasons for that," said Julia Azari, Professor of Political Science at Marquette University. 

The ticket is sealed and ready to be united around. But not in 2024. 

"It’s really unusual to do this," said Mordecai Lee, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Professor Emeritus.

Trump, a candidate known for his theatrics and "not like the rest of them" attitude, aims to stray from what has become the norm. 

"This is a guy who understands theater, who understands the moment, the impact, creating a media event," Lee said. 

Trump is vowing to announce his pick for a running mate in Milwaukee at the Republican National Convention (RNC) – as the eyes of the world watch. 

"It’s brilliant," Lee said. 

What is the norm? 

There are no rules when it comes to announcing a vice presidential pick. It is ultimately up to the nominee and his or her campaign.

"For many years the convention sort of reflected that history by being the place where the VP was announced. That hasn’t been the case for several decades," Azari said. 

In fact, the last time it happened at a convention was 1988 – when George H.W. Bush announced Dan Quayle as his running mate at the RNC in New Orleans. 

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Since then, every vice president for both Republicans and Democrats have been known ahead of convention time. Eight years ago, Donald Trump announced Mike Pence as his vice presidential pick three days before the RNC. Hillary Clinton did the same, making Tim Kaine her running mate three days before the DNC in 2016.

History in politics

As we look even further back, the earliest vice presidential pick came 20 days before convention time – when John Kerry chose North Carolina's John Edwards to run on his ticket in 2004.

The latest pick ahead of either convention was on the Republican side when Bob Dole announced New York Congressman Jack Kemp as his VP pick just one day before the RNC in 1996. 

As we rewind history even more, conventions were the place where so much of the action happened. 

"They are really reflective of politics centuries ago where it would be the case that delegates would come together and actually make these decisions to pick the presidential nominee and also pick the vice presidential nominee," Azari said. 

The power was in the party's hands, not the person running for president. 

"What does the party want, who does that party want and then starting with FDR in the 30s it started to become more of a candidate centered process," Azari said. 

Presidential nominee attention

Keeping the attention on the presidential nominee during convention time was part of the reason for this shift. Another key factor – the media and allowing the scrutiny of the pick to rise and fall before the conventions take place. But not this time. 

"My guess is he hasn’t told anybody and he’s not going to tell anybody until the very last minute," Lee said. 

This will be former President Trump's third RNC as the nominee, and there will likely be nothing traditional about it. 

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"I wouldn’t put it past Trump to keep breaking traditions that he will come on the stage and in prime time he will announce his pick and who that is will come out from the floor and walk up it will be a moment and that’s really what he wants to accomplish," Lee said. 

There, of course, is a short list of contenders that's been circling in the headlines for the VP position, but who knows if Trump's actual pick is even on that list.