Washington, US

Mike Pence, the former vice president of the United States, on Wednesday (June 7) officially announced his entry into the 2024 presidential election campaign. With his announcement, Pence joined an already-crowded field that includes his one-time boss Donald Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former US envoy to UN Nikki Haley, and others. 

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Pence's announcement comes two days after papers filed with the US Federal Election Commission showed he had formally entered the race. In his online campaign, he said: "Today, before God and my family, I'm announcing I'm running for president of the United States." 

The 64-year-old Republican will appear at a campaign launch event later in the day in the early-voting state of Iowa, followed by a CNN town hall event Wednesday evening

In a tweet accompanying the video, he wrote: "I believe in the American people, and I have faith God is not done with America yet." He added, "Together, we can bring this Country back, and the best days for the Greatest Nation on Earth are yet to come!" 

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In his video, Pence cited inflation, immigration and recession risk. He also said, over images of the leaders of Russia and China, that "the enemies of freedom are on the march around the world". 

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What to expect next? 

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The road ahead for Pence is not going to be easy as a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll in May noted that Pence enters the Republican presidential primary with a mountain to climb, polling at just five per cent and trailing Trump by 44 points. 

For a vice president to run against a president he served under is quite rare as it has happened just a few times in history. He was a loyal deputy of Trump while serving as the vice president from 2017 to 2021. Pence also brought the religious right into the tent and was willing to defend the president against any accusation. Pence repeatedly defended him through multiple scandals during tumultuous four years in the White House.  

However, the narratives changed when Pence rejected Trump's demands that he overturn the 2020 election in his role as president of the Senate. After the US Capitol attack, Pence continued to praise his assailant in public, but it eventually changed as Trump's torrent of false claims of election fraud led to a mob chanting for Pence to be hanged at the US Capitol. 

Pence even called out Trump for endangering his family and other people at the US Capitol, and also emphasised his differences with Trump on issues ranging from the handling of Russian leader Vladimir Putin to abortion rights. 

(With inputs from agencies) 

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