Mike Pence, former United States vice president, has formally announced he will campaign for the Republican nomination for the 2024 presidential race.
The announcement sets him up against former President Donald Trump, the current frontrunner and Pence’s former boss.
He posted the video on Twitter on Wednesday, writing: “I believe in the American people, and I have faith God is not done with America yet. Together, we can bring this Country back, and the best days for the Greatest Nation on Earth are yet to come!”
“Today, before God and my family, I’m announcing I’m running for president of the United States,” he said in an online campaign video.
Pence’s announcement comes two days after papers filed with the US Federal Election Commission showed he had formally entered the race.
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“I believe in the American people, and I have faith God is not done with America yet,” the 64-year-old wrote in a tweet accompanying the video.
“Together, we can bring this Country back, and the best days for the Greatest Nation on Earth are yet to come!”
The former congressman and Indiana governor, an evangelical conservative, enters a primary dominated by Trump, who enjoys commanding polling leads, well clear of his nearest challenger, the rightwing Florida governor, Ron DeSantis.
Pence has spent much of the last two years touring early-nominating states such as Iowa and New Hampshire to reinforce his political vision as a “Christian, conservative, Republican – in that order.”
He is framing himself as a traditional Republican, concerned with fiscal responsibility and family values, who can deliver Trump’s economic policies without the drama.
He has also allied himself strongly with Ukraine and refused to rule out cuts to welfare payments.
While his politics are popular among Republicans, critics question whether Pence has a constituency in a party that is more focused now on populism and cultural politics than traditional conservatism.
