Republican Sen. J.D. Vance says he hasn't spoken to Donald Trump about being his VP pick

Who will former President Donald Trump pick as his 2024 running mate? The vice presidential speculation has already started.

Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, has long been thought of as a potential pick for the former president. Trump will not be running with his former vice president, Mike Pence, after the two publicly split in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot.

But on Sunday, Vance appeared to throw cold water on the idea that he's already spoken to the former president about the rumors that he's a VP contender.

“I talked to President Trump a lot. We're very close,” Vance, 39, said during an appearance on “Fox News’ Sunday.”

But he added that he's "never spoken to him about being vice president.”

If Trump were to ask Vance to be his No. 2, the Ohio native said he would “have to think seriously about it,” adding that he believes it is “really important” that Trump wins in the fall.

Vance, who in 2016 described himself as a “never Trump guy,” is now among the presumptive GOP nominees' closest allies. Their unlikely political friendship began in 2022, after Trump endorsed Vance in his bid for the Senate. The former reality TV star’s support is widely credited with helping Vance win the race.

The Ohio Republican is also reportedly close with the ex-president's oldest son, Donald Trump Jr.

Before he was elected to the Senate in 2022, Vance ran a Ohio-based venture capital firm for startups and authored the 2016 memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” about his Appalachian upbringing.

He is far from the only person Trump is rumored to be considering for vice president. The real estate mogul’s short list is also said to include Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, among others.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: J.D. Vance says he hasn't spoken to Donald Trump about 2024 VP pick