Former President Trump walked out in a line at a rally near Miami on Tuesday as his family watched from the front row.
He called out his son Eric Trump and daughter-in-law Lara Trump, noticed Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle, as well as his two grandchildren, in the audience, and paid special attention to his son, Barron Trump, who was appearing at a Trump rally for the first time since graduating from high school.
But former first lady Melania Trump was not in attendance, continuing a trend that has been emphasized throughout much of the former president’s 2024 campaign.
The former first lady has rarely attended public campaign events with her husband, but is expected to attend the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin but is not expected to speak, further fuelling speculation that she is not involved in the 2024 presidential race.
“At the end of the day, I think people are voting for a presidential candidate, not a spouse, a vice president or a staffer,” said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist who has worked on several presidential campaigns. “It’s who’s at the top of the list that matters. Of course, family dynamics can be a hindrance or an advantage, but they’re not likely to be the deciding factor.”
The former first lady’s office did not respond to a request for comment about her plans for the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday.
Former President Trump has frequently denied speculation that his wife was not involved in his campaign, including after he was convicted of 34 felony counts of hush money fraud to cover up his affair with porn star Stormy Daniels. Trump denies the affair and has said he plans to appeal the sentence.
“I have a wonderful wife, and she hears this stuff all the time,” Trump said in early June. “She’s OK. I know it’s very hard for her, but she’s OK.”
Katherine Jellison, a professor at Ohio University who specializes in first ladies and women in politics, said the role of first ladies at political conventions has evolved over the decades.
First ladies began attending major party conventions regularly around the 1950s, she said, and it wasn’t until Pat Nixon spoke at the Republican Convention in 1972 that it became common for first ladies or candidates’ spouses to speak at party gatherings.
Melania Trump spoke at the 2016 Republican National Convention in a speech that quickly drew controversy over allegations that she plagiarized parts of an earlier speech by Michelle Obama. The former first lady also spoke at the 2020 convention, delivering a speech in support of then-President Trump from the White House amid the coronavirus pandemic.
But the former first lady has largely stayed away from her husband’s 2024 presidential bid.
Though she appeared at Trump’s 2022 campaign kickoff, she has not accompanied him to any of his campaign rallies, did not appear onstage with him following his victories in the Iowa caucuses, the New Hampshire primary or the Super Tuesday primary, and did not attend the first debate between Trump and President Biden.
The first lady hosted a fundraiser for the LGBTQ group Log Cabin Republicans at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, in April and another for the group in New York City this week, and she was also present when she voted for Trump in Florida’s primary in March.
“Many events and choices in the Trump world are unprecedented, and Melania Trump has certainly not been a traditional first lady,” Jellison said.
Jellison said it would be surprising if a recent first lady “who has been in the public eye for so many years as a traditional politician’s wife” would suddenly adopt such a low-profile approach.
“But since Trump has never played that traditional role and her supporters don’t expect her to, the fact that she has chosen to stay out of the spotlight isn’t all that surprising,” Jellison said.
Melania Trump’s absence from the campaign trail has been made even more noticeable by the high profile of first lady Jill Biden.
The first lady had already begun her campaign outreach as a high-profile surrogate for President Biden, traveling overseas with the president and attending donor receptions across the country.
But Jill Biden became a central figure in the campaign after her husband’s halting and dismal performance in the June 27 debate led some Democrats to call for him to withdraw as the nominee.
Jill Biden has faced harsh criticism from some who say she is urging her husband to continue in the race despite concerns from elected officials and donors. Even former President Trump has suggested she doesn’t want her husband to drop out of the race.
But the first lady has remained focused on defeating Trump during recent campaigning and sought to reassure voters undecided about their support for her husband.
“There’s been a lot of talk about this race, but Joe has made it clear he’s fighting this race hard,” the first lady said in North Carolina as she kicked off her campaign’s efforts to serve veterans and military families.
“It’s his decision, and I fully support him, just as he’s always supported me in my career,” she said. “And you should too, or you wouldn’t be here today. Joe will keep fighting for you for another four years.”
