The 39-year-old from Ohio was best known as the author of the memoir “Hillbilly Elegy” before his election to the Senate in 2022.
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Senator J.D. Vance was once critical of former President Donald J. Trump, but he was elected to the U.S. Senate with Mr. Trump’s backing in 2022.
Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio, the newly announced running mate to former President Donald J. Trump, has gone on a rapid journey over the past eight years from best-selling author and outspoken Trump critic to one of Mr. Trump’s staunchest defenders and, now, his would-be second in command.
Before running for office, Mr. Vance, 39, was known as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” a best-selling memoir recounting his upbringing in a poor family that also served as a sort of sociological examination of white working-class Americans. The book was published the summer before Mr. Trump’s election in 2016, and many readers looked to it after his victory as a sort of guide to understanding Mr. Trump’s support among white working-class communities.
Mr. Vance himself harshly denounced Mr. Trump during his 2016 campaign. But by 2022, he had embraced Mr. Trump, winning a crowded Republican Senate primary with his backing and becoming a reliable pro-Trump voice in Congress.
Here is more on Mr. Vance’s background and views.
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Source: nytimes.com
