When Melania Trump cast her ballot last month in the Florida primary alongside her husband, former President Trump, she was asked if she would return to the campaign trail this year.
“Stay tuned,” the former first lady replied with a smile.
But apart from a fundraiser earlier this month for Log Cabin Republicans at her Mar-a-Lago home, Melania Trump has been absent on the stump. And those around her say they don’t expect that to change.
“It’s just not her comfort space,” said one source who has spent time with the former first lady and is familiar with her preferences when it comes to campaigns and the political stage.
“And I think it’s a real loss because first ladies are typically helpful on the campaign trail with women, with undecideds, and she has a very compelling story and she’s good at telling it,” the source said. “I respect her for doing something she doesn’t want to do but you have to look at it as a detriment to her husband’s campaign.”
A second source added: “The campaign doesn’t ask her to be out there because they know she dislikes it … She’s a very private person.”
Trump’s criminal hush money trial in New York — in which he is accused of fraudulently concealing payments made to a porn star to hide an alleged affair ahead of the election in 2016 — is keeping the former president off the campaign trial for the time being.
Strategists say surrogates like the former first lady and Trump’s children could help fill the void, particularly with a number of polls showing President Biden gaining on Trump over the last several weeks.
Trump has a paper-thin lead of 0.4 percentage points over Biden in the latest Decision Desk HQ/The Hill (DDHQ) aggregation of national polls. Biden has overtaken Trump in Pennsylvania in the DDHQ aggregate of polls in that state, while the race has narrowed in the swing states of Michigan and Wisconsin.
But those who know Melania Trump say they expect she will likely stay out of the spotlight, despite the pressure of Trump’s legal fights and the campaign.
“If she’s not on the campaign trail now that her husband is in the middle of a criminal trial, I don’t think she’s going to do it at all,” the first source said, adding that the former first lady “doesn’t want to be in a position where she’s asked about it.”
Trump’s campaign and the former first lady’s aides would not comment on how Melania Trump would participate in the presidential campaign, after repeated requests.
Sources who know the first lady say she wields a lot of power with her husband and privately remains one of his top advisers. When an issue or news item matters to her, she makes it a point to get in his ear, sources say. And in key moments on the campaign — including the selection of his vice president — she is known to voice her opinion.
Earlier this month, the former first lady made headlines for launching a line of customizable necklaces for Mother’s Day. The so-called Her Love & Gratitude necklaces cost $245. Proceeds from the necklace — which is sold on her website — appear to go to Melania Trump.
“Being a mother is one of the most important roles in life,” Melania Trump said in a statement, adding that the necklace expresses “immense gratitude and honor” to all mothers.
Since leaving the White House, Melania Trump has spent most of her days focused on her family. One source said she spends time with her sister Ines and she goes to the Mar-a-Lago spa. Next month’s focus: the high school graduation of the former first couple’s son, Barron.
“She’s not on Worth Avenue hanging out with her girlfriends,” the first source said of the renowned Palm Beach street known for its high-end shops. “She’s introverted and family-focused and is not really motivated by the things that motivate most political spouses.”
Melania Trump’s absence from the campaign trail differs greatly from the approach taken by first lady Jill Biden.
Since the start of the year, Biden has made 26 appearances on behalf of the campaign including a tide of campaign fundraisers and events in battleground states including Georgia, Nevada and Arizona, where she helped launch the “Women for Biden-Harris” coalition. Last week, the first lady, a longtime college professor, appeared in Minnesota to launch “Educators for Biden-Harris,” a program aimed at engaging and mobilizing teachers, school staff and parents in support of her husband’s campaign.
Jill Biden has also sat down for interviews, as she did in January with Mika Brzezinski, the co-host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” where she talked about how the Jan. 6 insurrection on the Capitol in 2021 makes her “want to be in the fight even more.”
“Because we have to win. We must win. We cannot let go of our democracy,” she said.
In the interview, the first lady also advocated on her husband’s behalf, even as questions about his age and mental acuity loom over the campaign.
“He can do it. And I see Joe every day. I see him out traveling around this country. I see his vigor. I see his energy. I see his passion every single day,” she said. “His age is an asset.”
First ladies typically shine a spotlight on the softer, more human side of a president, discussing more private moments, highlighting their personalities and their passions.
But in the case of Trump, “he doesn’t need to be humanized because that’s not what his voters want,” Kate Andersen Brower, the author of “First Women: The Grace and Power of America’s Modern First Ladies,” said. “They don’t want to see the softer side of Donald Trump.”
Brower went on to say that Melania Trump “is the most private lady in American history.”
“And his supporters are fine with her being in the shadows,” she said.
Tyler Mitchell