Former US Vice-President Mike Pence is reportedly set to join the race for the 2024 Republican White House nomination.
The BBC reports that this places a big political target on the back of the current front-runner, former President Donald Trump, setting the stage for what promises to be an acrimonious contest.
Sources close to the former Vice-President’s campaign said Pence would launch his campaign on 7 June in Iowa.
Pence was a loyal deputy to Trump for four years, but broke with him after the 2021 Capitol riot. The BBC notes that Trump turned on him for lacking ‘courage’ after he refused to help overturn the 2020 election results.
The son of a Korean War veteran, Pence, 63, began his career in conservative politics as a talk radio host.
He was elected to the House in 2000 and served until 2013, describing himself as a “principled conservative” and aligning with the Tea Party movement.
He also served as governor of Indiana from 2013-17. In that role, he passed the largest tax cut in state history, and signed bills to restrict abortion and protect religious freedom. Pence is a born-again evangelical Christian.
The eventual winner of the Republican nomination race looks likely to challenge President Joe Biden, a Democrat, in the election of November next year.
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