South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) said former President Trump choosing a woman to be his running mate would be “beneficial” to him.
“I think that that would be beneficial, according to the polling that I’ve seen for him and a lot of swing states, is that having a woman that is helping his campaign makes a difference,” she said on CNN’s “State of the Union” when asked if Trump should pick a woman as his vice president.
Noem, a vice-presidential hopeful for Trump, told co-host Dana Bash that “all the polls tell him in the swing states that a woman on the ticket helps him win.”
“One in four Republican women haven’t made up their minds because they want to have a woman talking to them about the issues they care about. And women aren’t monolithic. They don’t care about just one issue,” she said.
“They care about health care; they care about their children; they care about their futures. They care about having an opportunity to have a business and to have a career. And all of that is being threatened [under] Joe Biden, but yes, the women vote is extremely important,” she added.
Trump has not chosen his running mate yet but has sent vetting materials to a handful of vice presidential contenders, including North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum (R) and Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and JD Vance (R-Ohio), a source confirmed to The Hill.
ABC News reported that Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Ben Carson were also sent some materials, but it’s not clear how much they received.
Noem did not say if she knew whether she was still being considered for the vice-presidential slot on Trump’s ticket when pressed by Bash.
“I told President Trump over and over again, he needs to pick whoever helps him win. I have been loyal to him since the very beginning when he first started to run in 2016,” she said.
“He told me his priority is picking a running mate that can govern on day one, that has been loyal to him, that has experience and runs businesses, knows how to be a CEO, but also supports him in his policies. I don’t care. I love my job in South Dakota. I care about the fact that I want him to win, and he knows that I will do that,” she added.