donald trump has narrowed his search for a running mate and is focusing on four potential vice presidential candidates, all men, according to a report.
Trump, who was historically convicted of 34 criminal charges in New York last week, recently received verification material from some of the candidates, sources told NBC News.
The source told the news outlet that the search is focusing on North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida, Tim Scott of South Carolina and J.D. Vance of Ohio.
Another source told NBC News it was a three-way battle between Burgum, Rubio and Vance.
The outlet stated that it is not known which of the potential running mates was invited to provide verification material for the campaign.
Trump became the first president in US history to be prosecuted when his hush money trial began in Manhattan on April 15.
He was convicted by a New York jury of all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a secret payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump will be sentenced in New York on July 11, just four days before he becomes the official Republican nominee for president at the Republican Party convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The one-term president said he likely won’t decide on his running mate until closer to the convention.
Mike Pence was nominated by Trump just days before the party’s 2016 convention in Cleveland, Ohio.
Other names to consider include South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Reps. Elise Stefanik of New York and Byron Donalds of Florida, and Ben Carson, who served in Trump’s Cabinet as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
Noem was seen as a strong candidate until she published her autobiography, in which she said she killed her dog Cricket and threw the animal’s body in a gravel pit.
The Independent reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.
