Ivanka Trump’s Absence From Donald Trump’s Campaign Might Signal a Fracture in the Family

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Ivanka Trump told the public two years ago that she was not joining Donald Trump’s third run for president, and she has stuck to her word. She did make a brief appearance at the Republican National Convention in July as a spectator, but her lack of support might signal something bigger that’s going on in the Trump family. 

Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. have taken on more prominent roles in the presidential campaign as Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, took a step back — and not everyone likes this change. “Different family members are the faces this time around and who are they? They’re the more MAGA. Junior is clearly MAGA. Lara Trump is a MAGA idiot, and her husband Eric is the same way,” former Republican congressman Joe Walsh told The Guardian. “Jared Kushner and Ivanka were never that way. They’re more polite, kind of high society folks so they were never really meshed with the whole MAGA thing.”

With Melania Trump focused on the promotion of her memoir, Melania, son Barron, 18, enjoying his freshman year at New York University and daughter Tiffany Trump pregnant with her first child, there appears to be two factions of the Trump family right now. “You know Trump is losing because Jared, Ivanka, and Melania are nowhere to be seen. If he was really ahead, they’d be all over the Campaign like jackals on a two-day-old gazelle corpse,” claimed Rick Wilson, co-founder of the anti-Trump group, the Lincoln Project to the media outlet.

In November 2022, Ivanka bowed out gracefully from politics for good. “I love my father very much. This time around I am choosing to prioritize my young children and the private life we are creating as a family. I do not plan to be involved in politics,” she said in a statement to CNN. “While I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside the political arena. I am grateful to have had the honor of serving the American people and I will always be proud of many of our Administration’s accomplishments.”

In May 2024, there was a rumored return to politics, per Puck News, but it only appears to be a brief flirtation. A source told the outlet that she was “warming to the idea of trying to be helpful.” The insider added, “[She’s] privately not ruling out having some sort of role. She’s not like ‘Hell no’ anymore.” That Ivanka renaissance did not come to fruition as she and Kushner focused on their socialite lives and the construction of a luxurious resort in Albania. 

If Donald Trump does return to the White House, it’s unclear if Melania is even interested in the first lady position. Ivanka and Kushner won’t be there either, so it leaves a big question mark as to how united the Trump family will be if he returns to Washington, D.C.

Before you go, click here to see every time Ivanka Trump has tried to distance herself from the Trump family: