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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Melania Trump Missed key events in her husband’s presidential campaign earlier this year – starting with the 2024 election In Iowa Donald Trump’s Super Tuesday At the victory party, reporters asked the former first lady if she planned to attend a campaign event. She responded: “Stay tuned.”
But Melania Trump has largely avoided public appearances since making the comments after voting alongside Donald Trump in the Florida primary in March. The few exceptions included a couple of fundraisers in April and their son’s high school graduation.
The former first lady was notably absent from the Republican presidential candidate’s month-long hush money trial in New York. She did not accompany Trump to the Guilty verdict or the next day, when Trump spoke at Trump Tower. She also did not attend the June 14 78th Birthday Party events organized for Trump by his fan club, or at any of the campaign rallies he has held in recent months.
Melania’s absence from the trial and other key moments is unusual, said Katherine Jellison, a history professor at Ohio University who studies first ladies. But Jellison said it may not be surprising, as Melania Trump has seemed reluctant to follow the traditional public role of a politician’s wife. She has also kept a low profile as first lady and has not frequently appeared at her husband’s failed 2020 presidential campaign.
“But everything the Trumps did seemed to violate the standards for how candidates and their spouses should behave,” Jellison said.
Melania Trump’s behavior is different from the way other politicians rely on their spouses. Sometimes male politicians turn to their wives to win over female voters. Candidates may also bring their spouses into the campaign so that voters can learn more about the candidate outside of the political arena.
For example, during this year’s Republican primary, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ wife, Cathy DeSantis, traveled with him, gave interviews, and formed a coalition called “DeSantis Moms” before he abandoned his bid for the nomination. Vivek Ramaswamy’s wife, Dr. Apurva Ramaswamy, also participated in the campaign, often appearing with their two children and talking about the importance of family.
The Associated Press contacted 15 people who had attended recent major fundraisers or visited Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort. None said they had seen Melania Trump at the Florida estate.
Her office has not responded to multiple requests for comment. Her only recent public statement came two days after the Florida Republican Party announced with great fanfare that her 18-year-old son, Barron Trump, had been selected as a state delegate to the Republican National Convention. Said he couldn’t comeand reference the previous commit.
During Trump’s felony trial, reporters at the New York court repeatedly asked him, “Where is Melania?” But he never answered. Trump’s allies said the main reason for Melania’s absence was their son’s school schedule, but they did not deny that it was a delicate moment for the family.
Trump’s attorney, Todd Branch, was asked about rumors that she would accompany him to court.
“That’s not a discussion I want to have,” Branch responded during an interview on Miami trial lawyer David Oscar Markus’ “The Defense” podcast. “It’s a difficult case because of the nature of the charges, the evidence that was received, the history, and the duration.”
Part of the testimony revealed that Trump allegedly had sex with porn actress Stormy Daniels in July 2006, four months after Melania Trump gave birth to Barron; Trump has denied Daniels’s claims. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, testified that Trump seemed less concerned about how the sex story he wanted to cover up would damage his marriage than about how it would hurt his 2016 presidential ambitions.
But Hope Hicks, the communications director for Trump’s 2016 campaign, testified that Trump was concerned in 2016 about how his wife would view reports involving Playboy model Karen MacDougal and wanted her to make sure the newspaper was not delivered to their residence.
Melania Trump did not post anything to her social media accounts after her husband was found guilty of 34 felonies. That was in stark contrast to Trump’s older sons, who were quick to condemn the verdict. Daughter Ivanka Trump posted a photo of her as a toddler with Trump’s sons on Instagram with the caption “I love you daddy.” His youngest daughter, Tiffany Trump, accompanied him to the courthouse for the trial’s closing arguments last month.
“I think it’s very hard on her,” Trump said of his wife in an interview with Fox News after the verdict. “I mean, she’s fine. But, you know, she has to read this crap.”
Although she is not present at campaign events, Trump frequently mentions her and shares conversations between the two, showing supporters that she is still involved behind the scenes by providing feedback to the former president.
Larry Snowden, president of the “Club 47” fan group, said he last saw the former first lady at a party in February hosted by the “Trumpettes,” a group of female supporters. He said he never interacted with her one-on-one but that she was “very charming” when he saw her there.
“She was very happy, smiling and welcoming to anyone who wanted to come up and shake her hand or anything,” Snowden said.
Snowden said he does expect Melania Trump to make appearances and give major speeches throughout the campaign, but he also believes the former president “will continue to be very protective of her.”
Gomez Licon reported from Miami. Associated Press writer Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.
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