As the 2024 election season is well underway, the number of Republican presidential candidates vying for the nomination gets smaller each day. What started as a cast of characters including the first former president to face a criminal indictment, a 37-year-old biopharmaceutical entrepreneur who thinks we should raise the voting age to 25, the first female governor of South Carolina, and one of two sitting Black senators, is now down to just a few.
The field is still very much dominated by former President Donald Trump (the twice-impeached, four-times indicted, insurrection-boosting former president is so far the front-runner), especially after his win in Iowa. But a few other Republican candidates, namely US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, are still keeping their hat in the ring for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination.
Here’s what you need to know about the Republican presidential candidates (whether they're in or out):
Related: 2024 Democratic Presidential Candidates: Who Is Running?
Who is running?
Former president Donald Trump
Trump is running again as the slew of controversies that surround him continues to grow. Most recently, Trump was found liable for sexually abusing and defaming writer and longtime Elle columnist E. Jean Carroll. In April, Trump also became the first-ever current or former president to face criminal charges; he was indicted over a case regarding hush money payments related to his 2016 presidential campaign but pleaded not guilty to all 34 felony counts. And the former president is the subject of multiple other legal inquiries, including an investigation in Fulton County, Georgia, over his attempts to interfere with the electoral count in the 2020 election. Trump has said he will continue to run in 2024, even if he is convicted. (He is legally allowed to do so).
And yet, the 76-year-old is still the front-runner in the 2024 Republican field, with a loyal base of followers behind him looking to “make America great again”; however, his current campaign has thus far consisted mostly of bashing other candidates (including those who haven’t officially launched a campaign yet) rather than focusing on tangible policies. When Trump announced his campaign in November, he once again threw doubt on the electoral system, casting himself as an outsider who is not “a politician or conventional candidate.”
Among the current Republican presidential candidates, Trump is the eldest.
Ex-South Carolina governor and US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley
Haley, the former South Carolina governor and US ambassador to the United Nations under Trump, launched her campaign for the GOP nomination in February, calling for a “new generation of leadership.” The 51-year-old daughter of Indian immigrants was the first nonwhite, non-male governor of South Carolina (and the youngest governor in the country), and has cast herself as someone who bucks the Republican status quo.
In recent years, Haley has faced criticism for her on-again, off-again alliance with Trump, but she hopped back on the anti-Trump bandwagon this winter when she became the first official challenger to the former president. So far, Haley is the only woman to announce a bid on the Republican side.
In Haley's campaign-launch video, she highlighted her background as being “not Black, not white,” and said, “I was different.” She called out Republicans for losing the popular vote in “seven out of the last eight presidential elections,” arguing for a “change” and lamenting the “failure” of “the Washington establishment.” So far, she has touted the need for fiscal responsibility and a secure border. In her launch video she also emphasized that she doesn’t “put up with bullies,” and — alluding to her track record as a woman in politics — said, “When you kick back, it hurts them more if you’re wearing heels.”
Earlier this month, Haley declined to endorse a federal abortion ban (which is shaping up to become a barometer check for GOP candidates as the primary unfolds). She said it would not “be honest” to mislead Americans with the idea that a federal ban is on the table.
Texan businessman and pastor Ryan Binkley
Another long-shot contender for the 2024 Republican nomination, Binkley is a business executive and pastor of Create Church, a nondenominational church he cofounded with his wife. According to the Des Moines Register, Binkley decided to launch his bid because, in recent years, he's “heard calls from the Lord about what's needed in our country.” Per his campaign website, the “Road to Freedom” involves “restoring unity” by seeking bipartisan solutions; reducing the national debt; promoting transparency in health care pricing; and achieving energy independence.
Who is no longer running?
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis
Update: After Donald Trump's victory in Iowa, Florida Governor Ron DeStantis decided to end his campaign. Like many of his fellow former candidates, he put his full endorsement behind Donald Trump. On January 21, he put out a public statement about the decision. “It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance,” DeSantis said in a video posted on social media. “They watched his presidency get stymied by relentless resistance, and they see Democrats using lawfare to this day to attack him.”
Previously: The Florida governor officially launched his campaign in a Twitter Spaces conversation with the company’s CEO Elon Musk, an event that was widely described as a “flop” and “disaster.” The glitchy stream was interrupted by nearly 30 minutes of technical difficulties. The DeSantis/Musk crossover came after the governor paraded around Iowa in mid-May, making it all but certain he was about to launch his campaign.
While Trump’s campaign has taken off in recent months, DeSantis — a 44-year-old Floridian who has made a name for himself by waging culture wars — has seen a dip in his own popularity. In the Sunshine State, the governor has signed into law a slew of bills to clamp down on LGBTQ+ rights; ban diversity, equity and inclusion education; AP African American history in public schools; prohibit abortion after six weeks; enable permit-less concealed carry; and restrict transgender health care for minors. He also started a feud with Disney after the family-oriented conglomerate with LGBTQ+-friendly policies denounced his education policies.
Once an ally of Trump, DeSantis has become a bitter foe of the former president. (Trump’s not-so-catchy nickname for the governor: Ron DeSanctimonious.)
Entrepreneur and “anti-woke” crusader Vivek Ramaswamy
Update: After failing to gain much traction at the Iowa Caucus, Vivek Ramaswamy ended his campaign and endorsed Donald Trump on January 20. "There needs to be an America First candidate in this race,” Ramaswamy said in a statement. "Going forward, he will have my full endorsement for the presidency."
Previously: The 37-year-old entrepreneur launched his campaign in February, positioning himself as a political outsider with a fresh perspective. “I am launching not only a political campaign but a cultural movement to create a new American Dream — one that is not only about money but about the unapologetic pursuit of excellence,” Ramaswamy wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed titled, “Why I’m Running for President.” The biopharmaceutical company founder has previously written two books, Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America’s Social Justice Scam and Nation of Victims: Identity Politics, the Death of Merit, and the Path Back to Excellence.
Earlier this month, Ramaswamy made headlines when he proposed raising the voting age to 25 years old, except for those who have met a “national service requirement.” Beyond “Civic Duty Voting,” the name given to his idea to raise the voting age, Ramaswamy has proposed “America First 2.0,” a series of “25 policy commitments to take America first further than Trump.” In recent weeks, Ramaswamy has lamented “the abandonment of rule of law in America,” and said he wants to shut down the FBI, IRS, and the Department of Education.
So far, Ramaswamy’s campaign has been mostly self-funded: The millionaire started by bankrolling his campaign with well over $10 million, according to Federal Election Commision reports.
Ex-Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson
Update: On January 16, former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson ended his bid for the presidency. “I congratulate Donald J. Trump for his win last night in Iowa and to the other candidates who competed and garnered delegate support,” he wrote in a statement. Today, I am suspending my campaign for President and driving back to Arkansas."
Previously: The former Arkansas governor has positioned himself as a palatable alternative to the MAGA wing of the Republican party. In launching his campaign in Bentonville, Arkansas, Hutchinson said he wants to “bring out the best in America,” and that he aims to fight “for the future of our country and the soul of our party.”
Throughout his years in office, Hutchinson has been an outspoken critic of Trump and called on the former president to drop out of the primary race, telling ABC’s Jon Karl, “The office is more important than any individual person.”
Hutchinson, a staunch conservative, has said he does not support a federal abortion ban, NBC News reported, though he did sign a near total abortion ban into Arkansas law in 2021. He later said the ban should be revisited to include exceptions for rape and incest after Roe v. Wade was overturned.
While in office, Hutchinson vetoed a bill banning gender-affirming care for youth but signed a law banning transgender women and girls from competing on sports teams of their corresponding gender identity.
Currently, Hutchinson's campaign website lists his priorities as “American energy,” “border security,” and “national defense,” among others. He also said he wants to cut federal spending and “reduce the federal civilian workforce by 10%.”
Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie
Update: On January 10 Christie announced that he would be suspending his campaign. "If we want to change this party, and if we want to change this country, it's hard work. It's not easy," he said. "From the moment I got into the race, the decision that I made was really simple: I would rather lose by telling the truth than lie in order to win."
Previously: The former New Jersey governor officially launched his 2024 White House bid in June at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics, declaring his mission to “take out” Trump, who he called a “self-consumed, self-serving mirror hog.”
Christie, who has spent the past few years as an ABC commentator, has blamed Trump for inciting the insurrection on January 6 and further blasted the former president for his focus on the 2020 election, arguing that the party as a whole should focus on the future. Christie has also said he doesn't think Trump can defeat Biden in a 2024 rematch.
Christie, who ran for the GOP nomination in 2016, is one of the only candidates willing to take direct jabs at Trump, though he did support the former president during his 2020 reelection campaign, notoriously helping Trump with his debate prep at the time.
In April Christie told Semafor, “If I get into the race, I’ll make it interesting,” and maintains stances that differ from some further right-wing GOP contenders. He doesn’t support abortion, but he does approve of the procedure in cases of rape and incest and does not believe there should be a federal ban.
North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum
Update: On Dec. 4, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum left the presidential after pollng in last place. "While this primary process has shaken my trust in many media organizations and political party institutions, it has only strengthened my trust in America," Burgum said in a press release. "Our nation doesn't need to be perfect to be exceptional."
Previously: Multimillionaire software executive turned North Dakota's governor, Burgum joined the crowded 2024 GOP field in June, framing himself as the candidate of "small-town values." Burgum, who is little known on the national stage, plans to distinguish himself by focusing on the economy, energy, and national security rather than hot-button culture war issues, according to NBC News. However, earlier this year Burgum did sign into law one of the strictest abortion bans in the country, essentially eliminating access to the procedure in North Dakota. The legislation bans the procedure, allowing for exceptions only in the first six weeks and only in cases of rape, incest, or medical emergency, such as an ectopic pregnancy.
South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Update: On November 12, Scott became the third candidate to drop out of the race. On Fox News's Sunday Night in America, he announced the news. “I love America more today than I did on May 22,” he said. “But when I go back to Iowa, it will not be as a presidential candidate. I am suspending my campaign. I think the voters who are the most remarkable people on the planet have been really clear that they’re telling me, ‘Not now, Tim.’”
Previously: Scott, the current South Carolina senator and only Black Republican in the Senate, announced his campaign for president at the end of May, after launching an exploratory committee and “Faith in America” listening tour through early primary states, including his home, South Carolina, Iowa, and New Hampshire.
He rolled out a video, also titled “Faith in America” in April, commemorating the start of the Civil War in South Carolina, and set up a parallel between the divisions the country faced then and the current dilemmas that fracture the country today. “Once again our divisions run deep and the threat to our future is real,” Scott said in the video. “I know America is a land of opportunity not a land of oppression. I know it because I’ve lived it,” he said. “I will never back down in defense of the conservative values that make America exceptional.” In the video, Scott said further that he would: “protect religious liberty”; “stand up to China”; fight for “choice in education”; “defend our borders and our neighborhood streets”; and “protect the right to life.”
At his campaign launch event in North Charleston, South Carolina, Scott told attendees, “We need a president who persuades not just our friends and our base.” He added, “We have to have a compassion for people who don't agree with us.”
Former vice president Mike Pence
Update: On October 28, Pence dropped out of the Republican primary race. In a speech at the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual gathering he said, “It’s become clear to me: This is not my time. So after much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign for president, effective today.” He added, “We always knew this would be an uphill battle, but I have no regrets."
Previously: Former vice president Pence — who broke from Trump after he certified the results of the 2020 election in the aftermath of the insurrection despite calls from Trump encouraging him not to do so — formally announced his own campaign for the presidency and then made stops in Iowa, South Carolina, and New Hampshire (Dunkin, anyone?).
In the past, Pence, an evangelical Christian and staunch conservative, received flack for an Indiana bill that allowed businesses to discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community and, in 2016, signed an abortion law that was at the time one of the strictest in the country.
Recently, the former vice president has been outspoken against Trump, saying that he put Pence’s family in danger during the January 6 insurrection. In April, Pence also testified to a grand jury investigating Trump related to the events of January 6 and the fallout from his failure to accept the results of the 2020 election. During Pence's campaign launch, he blamed the former president for abandoning conservative ideals and the US Constitution.
Right-wing commentator Larry Elder
Update: On October 26, Larry Elder ended his long-shot campaign and endorsed Donald Trump. “As I look at the path forward, and after careful consideration and consultation with my campaign team, I have made the difficult decision to suspend my campaign,” he wrote in a statement. “Now that I am exiting the race, I am proud to announce my endorsement of Donald Trump for President of the United States."
Previously: This right-wing political commentator launched his campaign for president in April. Elder was the leading GOP challenger in the unsuccessful Republican-led effort to recall California Governor Gavin Newsom in 2021 over accusations related to Newsom’s handling of the pandemic.
“America is in decline, but this decline is not inevitable,” Elder said when launching his presidential campaign. “We can enter a new American golden age, but we must choose a leader who can bring us there. That’s why I’m running for president.”
The long-shot candidate has a massive following thanks to his radio show and Fox News commentary. In April he told ousted former Fox News host Tucker Carlson that he is running for president because his father and brothers served in the Army but he didn’t, and he feels compelled to serve the country in some capacity. Said Elder, “I feel that I have a moral and religious and a patriotic duty that has been so good to my family and to me.”
Elder listed border security and law enforcement as top issues, and said he’s also running to push back against the “lie that America is systematically racist.”
Michigan businessman Perry Johnson
Update: On October 20, Johnson suspended his campaign. “With no opportunity to share my vision on the debate stage, I have decided at this time, suspending my campaign is the right thing to do,” he said in a statement.
Previously: Yet another businessman candidate, Johnson's dream as president is to “put Washington on a diet,” shrink the size of the federal government, and lower taxes. This is not his first foray into politics. According to the Associated Press, Johnson's 2022 bid for Michigan governor was deemed ineligible after the state's election bureau found that he had “filed thousands of fraudulent nominating signatures.”
Johnson enthusiastically backed Trump's campaigns in 2016 and 2020, and remains a supporter of the former president.
Former Texas congressman Will Hurd
Update: On October 9, Hurd decided to end his campaign. “While I appreciate all the time and energy our supporters have given," Hurd said in a statement. "It is important to recognize the realities of the political landscape and the need to consolidate our party around one person to defeat both Donald Trump and President Biden."
Previously: Retired CIA officer and former Texas representative Hurd entered the race in June, pitching himself as an experienced moderate in a field of far-right candidates. Hurd represented a Texas swing district from 2014-2020, serving as one of few Black Republicans in Congress. In his campaign announcement on CBS Mornings, he said a 2024 contest between Trump and Biden would be a “rematch from hell,” and pledged to focus on “defining challenges” for the US, including the growing influence of China, inflation, and declining school test scores.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez
On August 29, Suarez became the first Republican to drop out of the 2024 presidential race. Suarez had stood out from the rest of the field as the only Latino (he is Cuban American) and one of the youngest candidates (he is 45).
When he announced his 2024 campaign launch via video in June, Suarez pitched himself as the best bet to take the country forward and connect with young and urban voters. That pitch didn't take him far, though, and he dropped out after failing to qualify for the first GOP primary debate.
Since he was first elected as Miami mayor in 2017, Suarez has tried to bring Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and crypto money to the city, announcing in 2021 that he would take his salary in Bitcoin and promoting a branded cryptocurrency called MiamiCoin, according to The New York Times. (He has remained a crypto booster even as the industry has crashed in recent months, with coin values plummeting and industry leader Sam Bankman-Fried facing criminal charges for securities fraud.) Suarez has also spoken out about the imminent threat climate change poses to Miami and South Florida.
Suarez announced the end of his campaign in a statement on his X account, calling the two months he spent running for president “one of the greatest honors of my life.”
Editor's note: This story is continually updated as more candidates make their 2024 run official or drop out of the race.
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