NEW YORK –
Next week’s televised Republican National Convention will feature a nightly lineup of speakers including business leaders, elected officials, celebrities and everyday Americans.
While the official schedule has not yet been released, some names have been trickling out ahead of the four-day event that begins on Monday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The speeches are expected to highlight the convention themes including the economy, crime and global conflicts.
The convention will conclude on Thursday with a speech by former President Donald Trump after Republicans nominate him as their candidate for the Nov. 5 presidential election.
Here are some of the expected speakers:
David Sacks
Entrepreneur and investor David Sacks is part of a group of wealthy, high-profile Silicon Valley venture capitalists and investors who have thrown their support behind Trump.
In June, Sacks and his wife Jacqueline hosted a Trump fundraiser at their home in the Pacific Heights neighbourhood of San Francisco, raising US$12 million. Ohio Republican Senator J.D. Vance, who has worked in venture capital and is on Trump’s vice president short list, helped organize the fundraiser.
Sacks, a close friend of Elon Musk, was previously the chief operating officer of PayPal. He was an early investor in companies including Facebook, Palantir, Uber, SpaceX and Airbnb.
Mayor of East Palestine, Ohio, Trent Conaway in front of former U.S. President Donald Trump in East Palestine, Ohio, Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. (Matt Freed / AP Photo)
Trent Conaway
The mayor of East Palestine, Ohio, will be speaking on Wednesday, part of a lineup that will also include Trump’s pick for vice president and his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr. East Palestine, located on the state’s border with Pennsylvania, is the site of a toxic train derailment in February 2023 that sparked a health and environmental crisis.
Trump visited East Palestine about two weeks after the derailment and criticized Biden for not traveling to the working-class community of 4,700 citizens.
The White House noted at the time that federal agents were on the scene almost immediately after the derailment. Biden eventually visited East Palestine in February 2024.
Conaway, a conservative who does not support Biden, extended the invitation to visit to the president, saying it would be good for his community.
Amber Rose
Rose, a biracial, millennial model and reality television personality who once dated rapper Kanye West, is making her RNC debut in a speech next week.
Rose, who has more than 24 million followers on Instagram, endorsed Trump in May in a post featuring her standing alongside Trump and his wife Melania, with the comment “Trump 2024.”
On July 2 she posted a photo of herself wearing a red Make America Great Again baseball hat and a white bikini.
Rose called Trump an “idiot” in a 2016 interview with The Cut, adding: “He’s so weird. I really hope he’s not president.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gives brief remarks at the end of the 2024 Florida Legislative Session, Friday, March 8, 2024, in Tallahassee, Fla. (Alicia Devine / Tallahassee Democrat via AP)
Ron DeSantis
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, once considered a top contender for the 2024 Republican nomination and a political heir to Trump before his campaign floundered, is scheduled to speak on Tuesday.
DeSantis, who endorsed Trump after dropping out of the primary race, has become a leading figure within the Republican Party for his conservative stance on hot-button social issues involving schools, gender and abortion. He is also a staunch critic of Biden’s immigration policies.
During DeSantis’ presidential primary bid, Trump relentlessly attacked the governor.
UFC president Dana White, second from left, and Kid Rock, right, pose for photographs with former President Donald Trump at the UFC 295 mixed martial arts event Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023, in New York. (Frank Franklin II / AP Photo, File)
Dana White
The chief executive of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will speak ahead of Trump on Thursday. Trump has had a long relationship with White, who also spoke at the 2016 and 2020 Republican conventions in support of Trump’s candidacy.
Trump hosted UFC events at his since-bankrupt Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City decades ago when the sport was spurned by most venues, White said in a 2018 interview with The Hill.
Trump’s alignment with White and UFC helps his appeal with young men in particular.
The Republican presidential candidate attended a UFC match in Newark, New Jersey on June 1 in his first public appearance after being convicted on 34 felony counts relating to a scheme to a cover up an alleged affair with a porn star. White and clips from that appearance were featured in Trump’s first post on TikTok, a video that has been “liked” 7.7 million times.
Donald Trump Jr., speaks at a rally for his father, Republican presidential candidate former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Laconia, N.H., Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. (Matt Rourke / AP Photo)
Donald Trump Jr.
The former president’s eldest son and one of his most public supporters will speak on Wednesday night. Trump Jr. serves as executive vice president of the Trump Organization, which he runs with his brother Eric.
An avid hunter, Trump Jr. also hosts the “Triggered” podcast, which features conversations with conservative figures including Charlie Kirk and Steve Bannon.
(Reporting by Helen Coster Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Alistair Bell)
