NEW YORK CITY - Former President Donald Trump is reportedly eyeing Senator Marco Rubio, R-Fla, to be his running mate ahead of the November general elections, sources close to NBC News said on Thursday.
To be clear, Rubio is not the only person who the Republican nominee is keeping a look at. In a recent interview with Newsmax, Trump estimated he is looking at about 15 possible candidates for the position, including Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.
"The list is long, and it's extremely early in any kind of process," a Trump adviser said. "No one has been directly reached out to yet, and I do not expect that for some time."
Nevertheless, sources close to the situation told NBC that Rubio is one of the highlighted names, and Trump has been urged by associates to nominate a person of color as Vice President.
Rubio is a Miami-born son of working-class Cuban immigrants. The Florida senator is young and telegenic, he has spent more time in federal office than Vice President Kamala Harris, and, as the GOP seeks to lure Latino voters, he would be the first non-white person ever to make a Republican presidential ticket.
Over the years, the Senator has had a tumultuous relationship with the former President. Eight years ago, they competed for the 2016 GOP nomination, routinely exchanging heated barbs, including thinly veiled shots at each other's manhood. Trump nicknamed Rubio "Little Marco" during that campaign, and Rubio responded by saying Trump had "small hands."
Eventually, their relationship improved as Rubio backed Trump's White House agenda and endorsed him right before January's Iowa caucuses this year.
But while the pairing may look good on paper, if they decide to go this route, they might run into some electoral issues.
The Constitution prohibits electors from voting for a president and a vice president from their own states.
"The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for two Persons, of whom one at least shall not be an Inhabitant of the same State with themselves," Article II, Section I, Clause 3 reads.
But that didn't stop Dick Cheney, a longtime Texan, from changing his residence to Wyoming in 2000 so he could run with Texan George W. Bush.
It's not clear whether Rubio would be interested in running as VP, and he has raised the Constitution as a possible impediment before.
"We're both from the same state, so that's probably not going to work that way," Rubio said when he was asked about joining Trump's ticket on Fox News in January.
The Trump team plans to test out top contenders on the campaign trail at rallies and events in the coming months. It will also assess hopefuls' ability to raise money, a skill that Rubio is familiar with, as he nearly collected $50 million for his 2016 presidential run, according to NBC.
If Rubio decides to move to another state and join the ticket, he would have to resign his current Senate seat, giving Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis a big plum in the form of a Senate appointment to hand out.
"The more interesting part is what it means for Rubio's Senate seat and who DeSantis would appoint," a veteran Florida GOP operative told NBC.
Sources close to NBC say there is a growing consensus around a June announcement of a vice presidential pick— at least a month before the convention— but there are no firm plans yet.
Rubio is not the only minority candidate seen as a potential running mate alongside Trump. Kellyanne Conway, former Senior Counselor to the Trump presidency, suggested on a Fox News panel that her former boss should consider selecting a person of color to complete the ticket.
In reference to recent polls indicating a surge in preferences for the Republican party from Hispanics, Conway said Trump will get "monster gains" in support from this demography in the presidential election.
Fox News contributor Kellyanne Conway urged former President Donald Trump to pick a person of color as his running mate while predicting that he will make "monstrous gains" in support among Hispanic voters in November.
"I think that Donald Trump's going to have monstrous gains among Hispanics, and I think it's part of why he should pick a person of color as his VP," Conway said during the Outnumbered panel on Wednesday."
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