Indian-American entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy emerged as one of US President-elect Donald Trump’s fiercest backers during his successful 2024 campaign for the White House. His energetic speeches advocating Trump’s hard-line policies struck a chord with many voters and attracted the attention of bigwigs like Elon Musk.
During the campaign trail, Ramaswamy competed against Trump for the presidential nomination during the GOP primaries and pitched himself as “Trump 2.0″. He and Trump largely avoided attacking each other during the primaries, and the President-elect commended Ramaswamy for doing “a hell of a job” after he dropped out of the race
Now that Trump is going to form the next government, Ramaswamy was anticipated for a big role in his second administration that will take the reins from January 20 next year. However, Trump seemingly snubbed Ramaswamy for the post of Secretary of State by giving it to Senator Marco Rubio, according to several reports.
With this, the million-dollar question is what Ramaswamy’s role would be in the Trump 2.0 cabinet. With several high-profile positions still left for allocation, there is still a chance that the businessman would be given a key post after Trump refused to invite another Indian-American Republican leader Nikki Haley.
Did Trump Promise Ramaswamy A Position In His Administration?
The Republican primary debates were chaotic as Ramaswamy took on Haley by calling her “fascist” and “corrupt”. His tersely-worded arguments thrust him into the spotlight as an outspoken supporter of Trump’s policies as he called the latter “the greatest president” in US history.
Soon after dropping his presidential bid, Ramaswamy strongly endorsed Trump and attacked Kamala Harris for her policies on the economy and immigration. Trump praised the young Indian-American businessman, describing him as “smart as hell” and noted that he initially provided tough competition during the race.
After withdrawing from the race in June, Ramaswamy said, “There is not a better choice left in this race than this man right here. Do the right thing and vote for Donald Trump as your next president.” Trump thanked Ramaswamy for his endorsement and said “he’s gonna be working with us”.
“I hope he’s going to be involved in our administration,” Trump said last month, suggesting that Ramaswamy could oversee major government initiatives. “We can put him in charge of one of these big monsters and he’ll do a better job than anybody you can think of.”
Ramaswamy’s Role In Trump’s Administration
With weeks left for the ultimate showdown between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, Ramaswamy was reported as a possible vice presidential candidate until Trump chose Ohio Senator JD Vance for the role. Ramaswamy’s support for Trump remained resolute and his attacks on the Biden-Harris administration intensified. His regular speeches and interviews on X platform amplified support for Trump’s presidential bid.
Trump secured a landslide victory, winning 312 electoral votes over Harris’ 226 – with Republican victories in both the Senate and the House of Representatives – making him one of the most powerful presidents in US history. He called on Republicans to stop “dunking on Harris/Biden” and called on Democrats to give Trump a chance.
Vivek Ramaswamy was being considered for Secretary of State alongside Rubio, reported ABC News. However, recent reports suggest that Trump has picked Rubio over Ramaswamy for the position of America’s top diplomat.
Speaking to ABC, Ramaswamy appeared to tease a possible role in Trump’s cabinet, saying that he has a “couple of great options” before him. He did not reveal details about his role but confirmed having “high-impact discussions” about his path forward. Ramaswamy is also a favourite for Secretary of Homeland Security, but the newly-appointed ‘border czar’ Tom Homan is also in the race.
Now, media speculation suggests that Ramaswamy may not go for an administration job, but instead seek the governorship of Ohio in the 2026 election. The Indian-American GOP leader had expressed an interest in filling the Ohio Senate seat, which will be vacated by JD Vance as he takes on the role of the future Vice President.
Ramaswamy has a good chance of building his political clout in Ohio, which has increasingly sided with the Republican Party in recent election cycles, according to The Independent. As a senator, Ramaswamy could become the face of Trump’s immigration and border control policies for several years.