Ivanka Trump not to challenge Marco Rubio for Florida Senate seat in 2022, calls him 'good personal friend'
For many, she is the next big thing from the Trump family in America’s politics. After having served as the advisor to former president Donald Trump for four years, Ivanka Trump was seen to be a rising star in the Republican Party. Recently, the belief was strengthened by the fact she would run for the Senate from Florida, the state where the Trumps have formed a base post the adverse results in the 2020 presidential election. Speculation was rife that incumbent GOP Senator Marco Rubio, who faces a reelection next year, could face a formidable challenger in Ivanka in the primary.
But it has now been learnt that Ivanka has other plans. The 39-year-old entrepreneur-politician who also had a stint in modeling, has decided against challenging Rubio in the Senate election next year, reports said citing a source close to her. The New York Times was the first to report about her decision to not run for the Senate polls.
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According to the reports, Ivanka told Rubio during a talk a few weeks ago -- not long after the January 6 riots in the Capitol -- that she was not in favor of running for the Senate. Ivanka called Rubio a “good personal friend” and was confident that the latter “will continue to drive meaningful progress on issues” that both of them “care deeply about”.
Florida is home after presidential election
Speculation over Ivanka, the second of Donald Trump’s children and the elder daughter, making an impact on Florida politics gained steam after she moved to the Sunshine State along with her husband Jared Kushner and three children after her father’s loss in the 2020 presidential election. Trump has also moved to his residence in Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach in the state after the presidency got over.
Ivanka is not the only member of the Trump family who is expected to make a career in active politics soon. Lara Trump, the wife of Eric Trump, the second son of the former president, could also run for a Senate seat from North Carolina to replace the retiring GOP incumbent Richard Burr. Also, the possibility of Donald Trump Jr, the eldest son of the former president, taking the plunge in politics is not ruled out. A future advisory role for Kushner, who also served as Trump’s advisor over the last four years, is not an improbability either.
Had Ivanka, a resident of Miami, chosen to challenge Rubio in the 2022 polls, it could have an adverse effect on the party which is deeply split at the moment over the question of handling the legacy of Donald Trump. Ivanka and Rubio, instead, are in talks to hold an event together in Florida in the next few months on the expansion of the Child Tax Credit, an issue she focused on during her days as a top White House advisor. Rubio, it may be said here, was a staunch critic of Trump during the 2016 presidential election in which he also participated but turned into his ally in recent times.
“Marco and Ivanka did speak a few weeks ago. Ivanka offered her support for Marco’s reelection and they had a great talk,” the Daily Mail quoted Nick Iacovella, a spokesman for Rubio, as saying. “We are discussing a joint event to highlight Marco and Ivanka’s successful push to expand the Child Tax Credit,” he added. The Daily Mail said a joint appearance by Rubio and Ivanka would be rather seen as the latter’s endorsement of the former seeking his third term in the chamber.