Melania Trump won’t spend much time in D.C. if her husband is re-elected, according to those who follow her.
In a survey from Axios, self-proclaimed Melania experts weighed in on Melania’s absence from Trump’s first term in office and what that means if the Trumps do another stint in the White House
A first lady sighting was so rare throughout Trump’s first term that many questioned whether she lived at the White House or at home with her parents in the suburbs.
The “Melania-ologists” said if Trump is re-elected, Melania is more likely to be splitting her time between Palm Beach and New York, where her son is rumored to be attending NYU, than at the White House. She is likely to only show face for special occasions, they said.
“She's distancing herself even more from her husband and from the Washington social political scene," Kate Andersen Brower, the author of several books about the White House and first ladies, told Axios.
Mary Jordan, the author of a book about Melania, said Melania's independence from her husband makes her a “standout in history from any other first-lady.”
“Melania does what Melania wants,” Jordan told Axios.
Melania has been almost entirely absent from Trump’s current presidential campaign. She wasn’t at the recent hush-money trial where her husband was convicted, nor at any of the campaign rallies he has held in recent months, the Associated Press reported.
In February, Trump was asked about his wife's absence on the campaign trail. He acknowledged it, but said Melania is still invested in his candidacy and "loves the country." A month later, Melania was asked directly about whether she would be more present throughout Trump's campaign.
"Stay tuned," she responded.
