Exclusive — Byron Donalds Would ‘Of Course’ Accept VP Role If Trump Offered: You Could ‘Really Help Shape the Country’

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) has become a presence not just on former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign trail but also on some early vice presidential short lists should Trump secure the Republican nomination.

Donalds, 44, told Breitbart News he would “of course” be open to the job if Trump were to offer it.

“If it came up? Oh yeah, of course, because you have the opportunity to do really powerful things for the country and really help shape the country,” Donalds said. “But I’m a member of Congress. I just do my job. I let everybody else speculate on the other stuff.”

Having gone from being raised by a single mother in Brooklyn’s inner city to becoming one of five black Republicans in Congress, Donalds is widely viewed as a rising star among his party.

The Florida Republican has a deep background in finance and banking that has landed him a spot on the Financial Services Committee, and he has joined in on congressional Republicans’ most high-profile probe, that of the Biden family’s business dealings, by way of the Oversight Committee.

In May, Donalds appeared on a CNN panel after Trump’s heated town hall with the outlet, delivering what appeared to be his party’s de facto response to the ordeal. Donalds said moderator Kaitlan Collins spent “more time interjecting her own viewpoints” during the event. Upon being interrupted, Donalds fired back, “Are you guys now going to interject your opinions on me or do I get a chance?”

Later that month Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) wrote on social media, “Retweet this if you think my friend [Byron Donalds] would make a great choice for Vice President.”

Retweet this if you think my friend @RepDonaldsPress @ByronDonalds would make a great choice for Vice President.

— Tim Burchett (@timburchett) May 24, 2023

Burchett told the Daily Beast, which observed Donalds’ growing VP potential at the time, that the idea for his tweet came from “the heart.”

In January, Donalds, who is serving out his second congressional term, also emerged as the alternative candidate for speaker of the House when about 20 members opposed now-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) bid for the role.

Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL), a Florida colleague and Trump backer, said of Donalds, “I can tell you that he’s probably one of the more competent members that you’ll find throughout all of Congress.”

Mills also sees Donalds as a viable vice presidential pick, telling Breitbart News he would “be someone who would really be a nice balance for President Trump.”

His colleague Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL), said in a statement, “We will definitely see him as a candidate for something bigger in the future. He has a heart for service. He is the future of the party.”

Cammack, who is friends with Donalds and an outspoken member herself, added in jest that the “hottest rising star” is however “from FL-03.”

Donalds recently appeared in Philadelphia with Trump, who remains the GOP frontrunner in the primary by wide margins in nearly every poll.

Watch:

President Trump, Rep. ⁦@ByronDonalds⁩ and ⁦@ErikaDonalds⁩ at Pat’s King of Steaks in Philly! pic.twitter.com/DrAxS5rUy1

— Jason Miller (@JasonMillerinDC) July 1, 2023

The pair were captured ordering at a cheesesteak joint among a dense crowd of supporters, a familiar scene for the former president, whose signature skill is retail politicking. Donalds, who represents a portion of southwest Florida, also appeared in Fort Myers in April with Trump, where the former president bought everyone pizza.

“That stuff is cool. I’m not going to lie. … But listen, I’m about winning. I told the president, I told his team, ‘I’m behind you a hundred percent. It’s time to go win, and whatever it takes, I’m gonna go win,’” Donalds said.

Weeks prior to the Fort Myers trip, Donalds made headlines for endorsing Trump over his fellow Floridian and friend Gov. Ron DeSantis, who remains in a distant second place to Trump and has so far struggled to break through and truly threaten Trump’s prospects.

The announcement was a boon to the Trump campaign at the time, significantly puncturing DeSantis’s chances of seeing any mass of support from his home turf’s congressional delegation.

With Trump continuing to dominate in the primary field, reports have begun swirling about his vice presidential options, including rumors he is weighing female candidates who could appeal to women voters, such as Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), former gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, or former Gov. Nikki Haley.

However, the primary is still in an early phase and while Trump has well over a dozen candidates to consider, he has observed Donalds from his first primary win in August 2020.

“The President congratulated me on a tough victory, but a good victory,” Donalds said at the time, according to Florida Politics. “He said he has heard good things about me, and he said ‘From what I see you are going to be a star.’”