Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (2024)

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (1)

By Ashley Wu,Marco Hernandez,Alicia Parlapiano,June Kim,K.K. Rebecca Lai,Helmuth Rosales,Karen Yourish and Jon Huang

July 19, 2024

The most prominent seats at the 2024 Republican National Convention were three rows of white chairs in Donald J. Trump’s V.I.P. box. For each of the convention’s four nights, members of the Trump family and prominent guests streamed in and out, joining the former president as he took in the show.

Here are some of the people spotted in the box each night.

Monday

Mr. Trump entered the arena triumphantly on the convention’s first night, just two days after he was shot in the ear by a would-be assassin. Flanking him were his newly announced vice presidential nominee, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, and Representative Byron Donalds of Florida, one of the evening’s speakers.

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (2)

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (3)

Photo by Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times

Members of Mr. Trump’s family, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, who presided over the roll-call vote formally nominating Mr. Trump, also appeared in the box.

Tuesday

Several Senate candidates and House leaders joined Mr. Trump in the box over the course of Tuesday night. Many of them also spoke from the stage, making the case for delivering control of Congress to Republicans in November.

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (4)

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (5)

Photo by Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times

The night’s final speaker was Lara Trump, co-chair of the Republican National Committee and Mr. Trump’s daughter-in-law. As the first Trump family member to speak from the convention stage, she talked about the attempt on Mr. Trump’s life in personal terms and focused on his roles as a father and grandfather.

Mr. Trump responded with applause, flanked by Mr. Vance and Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the House majority leader.

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (6)

Photo by Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times

Wednesday

Mr. Trump began his evening at the arena seated next to Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia, and to Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, one of the finalists to be Mr. Trump’s running mate who was ultimately passed over.

Other allies with speaking slots also appeared in the section, including Callista Gingrich, the former ambassador to the Holy See, and her husband, Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker and 2012 presidential candidate.

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (7)

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (8)

Photo by Todd Heisler/The New York Times

Mr. Vance wrapped up the third night of the convention with a nearly one-hour speech introducing himself and his economic vision to the nation. Mr. Trump watched his running mate while seated next to Mr. Vance’s wife, Usha Vance, a lawyer, and Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota, another person who was under consideration to join Mr. Trump on the ticket.

Several Trump family members appeared in the box at that time. Kai Trump, 17, Mr. Trump's eldest grandchild, also spoke that evening, characterizing him as “just a normal grandpa.”

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (9)

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (10)

Photo by Jamie Kelter Davis/The New York Times

Thursday

By the time Mr. Trump delivered his address, the box was largely filled with his family members. Mr. Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, who both served as senior advisors to Mr. Trump during his first term, made their first appearances in the arena Thursday.

His wife, Melania, also made her first appearance of the week, taking a seat in the box just before her husband gave his acceptance speech.

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (11)

Photo by Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times

Who Sat in Trump’s V.I.P. Box at the Convention? (2024)

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

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