Ivanka Trump
Ivanka’s presence on stage in the early hours of Wednesday morning, alongside her father, in a striking blue suit, marked her first appearance of this campaign. She and her husband, Jared Kushner, had played a prominent role in her father’s previous two runs for the White House.
She frequently gave speeches and appeared in TV ads supporting him, and served as an official advisor during his presidency. But in November 2022, Ivanka announced she would be stepping back from frontline politics. “While I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside the political arena,” she said.
She has stuck to her guns since. Unlike her brothers, she did not appear to support her father in court earlier this year. She has said that she wanted to prioritise her family and business interests, but there has been speculation she also wanted to distance herself from some of the more unsavoury accusations against the president-elect. In a New York Times piece last week, Kushner said his wife had “closed that chapter of her life” and that, while they were “rooting for” Donald, their life would “continue to move forward” regardless of the election outcome.
Vicky Ward, the author of a book, Kushner, Inc: Greed. Ambition. Corruptionabout the couple’s extensive business interests, said: “They don’t need to go into government. They’ve already proven, in a way, that government is really good business for them.”
A former European-based ambassador in Trump’s first term tells The Telegraph: “One of the many things that people are overlooking in Donald Trump’s victory is his inclination to do things differently second time round and run a more efficient operation in the White House. Jared and Ivanka are quite happy doing business in the Middle East and striking Eastern European property deals, so I don’t think they’ll play as prominent a political role in Trump’s second term, and I don’t think they want to.”
Jared Kushner
Kushner was the golden boy of Trump’s first term in office, a then 36-year-old property developer who – by virtue of being married to Trump’s daughter – went from running the social media side of his election campaign, codenamed Project Alamo, to a job as senior adviser to the new president. He focussed on the Middle East.
Despite the accusations of nepotism, those who came across Kushner reported a surprisingly engaged figure, more cerebral than some of his extended family. Given the war in Gaza that is spilling out into neighbouring countries, his experience could be vital in the months and years ahead. The snag is that he has expressed no interest in returning to frontline politics.
Since Trump left power in 2020, Kushner has used the connections from his time in the White House to burnish an already hefty fortune. He founded a private equity fund, Affinity Partners, which has $3 billion under management, almost all of it from Saudi Arabia. In the New York Times interview, Kushner said there was “zero” chance of him and Ivanka joining Donald in the final stages of the campaign. But he may be acting behind the scenes.
Trump’s transition co-chair Howard Lutnick told Rolling Stone last week: “Jared Kushner is a big help to me … he’s absolutely helping me.”
“The Middle East stuff may still interest Jared,” says Raheem Kassam, a former advisor to Nigel Farage and a Trump insider. “[Trump] is going to want it sorted out before he takes office. He’s not going to want to inherit a State Department that’s worried about going to war. I think you’ll see Jared over there ASAP trying to knock people’s heads together.”
Donald Trump Jr
During Donald Trump’s first run at the White House in 2016, the advisory roles were dominated by Jared and Ivanka. But with the golden boy and girl having removed themselves from the picture, at least for now, Don Jr has emerged as the most involved family member.
He was brought on board in April 2021, after his father’s defeat by Joe Biden, as he started planning his third tilt at the big job. It was a surprising twist, given that, in previous accounts, Donald Sr had been reportedly less than admiring of his eldest son’s intellectual qualities.
Since becoming increasingly involved, however, Don Jr has been credited with keeping his father aligned with his core voters, particularly on culture-war issues. “Don has the pulse of the base and knows where the energy of the party is, so he’s sort of the go-to person now on a lot of political things,” a former aide told CNN.
He was reportedly instrumental in keeping JD Vance as the vice-presidential pick, in the face of pressure from others to change course after Vance drew flak for, among other things, describing Kamala Harris as a “childless cat lady”.
“Don Jr absolutely nailed the VP pick,” says Kassam. “He brought Vance to the table. Nobody thought that was a serious prospect. You have to respect that.”
Vance has returned the support, saying of Don Jr: “With the exception of his dad, I’m not sure I’ve seen anyone who has a stronger natural connection to our base.”
Don Jr’s podcast, Triggeredhas meanwhile become an influential platform in MAGA-land. Given Jared and Ivanka’s historic trajectory from helping with the campaign to helping in government, it would be no surprise to see Don Jr rewarded with an official role in the White House.
