Melania Trump Reportedly Still Deciding How Much Effort She Wants to Expend Helping Her Husband Get Reelected

As Melania Trump has made abundantly obvious for some time now, appearing in public with her husband is not high on her list of priorities. Whether this is because she is too busy with other commitments; has developed a nut-like allergy to him and breaks out in hives if they’re in the same room; or despises the guy, is not clear. But what is clear is that she’s been conspicuously absent from the campaign trail, leading people to wonder if she will ever campaign for her husband. The answer, apparently, is yes, but she’s still deciding how much time she’s willing to spend in his presence.

“She’ll definitely have a role, but in terms of what that is, I don’t know,” a person familiar with the matter told CNN. “It is her decision on how much or how little she will be campaigning.” Per the outlet, numerous sources stressed that “there is no indication of Melania Trump having a ramped-up role anytime soon, while also cautioning that at any point she could make the decision to hit the trail of her own accord.” A source close to Donald Trump said, “She is very selective and methodical in what she wants to do and how she presents herself. She is very decisive with these things and knows they have a lot of intended and unintended consequences.”

According to CNN, the former first lady’s role at this summer’s Republican National Convention “hasn’t quite been nailed down,” and while she’s expected to play some part, her nonattendance thus far has raised many questions:

It was her absence on Super Tuesday—one of her husband’s biggest nights so far of his campaign—that raised eyebrows earlier this month. She didn’t appear at the campaign’s victory event at the couple’s Mar-a-Lago resort. “This was an amazing night, an amazing day—it’s been an incredible period of time in our country’s history,” Donald Trump said during his speech that night, later thanking his family. Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Tiffany Trump were there.

Melania Trump has made only two formal public appearances for her husband’s reelection bid—the kickoff of his campaign in November 2022 and just last week, when she appeared with him to vote in the Florida presidential primary. Afterward, while standing next to him speaking to reporters, the former first lady was asked when she [was] going to return to the campaign trail with her husband. “Stay tuned,” she said with a smile.

In an interview with Megyn Kelly last year, the ex-president attributed his wife’s absence on the campaign trail to her being a deep person with high self-esteem. “I think part of the beauty is that mystery,” he told Kelly. “She’s introspective and she’s confident; she doesn’t need to be interviewed by you to get ripped apart for no reason. She doesn’t need to be out there. She’s got confidence; she has a lot of self-confidence.”