Mike Pence Receives Republican Nomination For Vice President

Donald Trump said he picked the Indiana governor for "party unity."
Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence speaks in New York on July 16, 2016.
Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence speaks in New York on July 16, 2016.
KENA BETANCUR/AFP/Getty Images

CLEVELAND ― The Republican party officially nominated Indiana Gov. Mike Pence to be its vice presidential candidate on Tuesday.

Pence, who served 12 years in Congress before becoming Indiana’s governor in 2013, could help presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump reach out to evangelicals and other members of the Republican establishment who are still skeptical of the business mogul’s candidacy. At a news conference on Saturday, Trump introduced Pence as his running mate and said one of the main reasons he chose him was “party unity.”

Even though Trump and Pence share a ticket, it’s not clear they share the same policy views. Pence is an avid defender of the war in Iraq ― something Trump claimed he opposed before the war even started. Pence is also an advocate for free trade, something Trump has also frequently criticized on the campaign trail.

In December, Pence also called Trump’s proposal to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S. “offensive and unconstitutional.” After being named Trump’s running mate, however, Pence switched his position and said he supports the plan.

Pence has also long attacked reproductive rights and blocked raising both the federal and Indiana minimum wage.

Trump did not know Pence well prior to picking him as his running mate, and the rollout of their ticket has been a bit awkward. When Trump’s veep choice leaked out, he reportedly asked his campaign advisers if it was too late to change his mind.

At the Saturday press conference held to introduce his running mate, Trump took nearly half an hour to bring Pence onstage and talked mostly about himself.

Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims ― 1.6 billion members of an entire religion ― from entering the U.S.

Before You Go

He has supported LGBT discrimination under the banner of "religious freedom."

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