The biggest shock of 2024 election night was, for many people, Donald Trump‘s decisive victory. But it wasn‘t the evening’s only surprise.
The appearance of Trump‘s wife, Melania, at his side during his rambling victory speech? Looking genuinely happy to be there? Somewhat unexpected, all things considered.
For one thing, a second Trump administration stands to be a human rights disaster from pretty much every angle: Reproductive healthcare, immigration, the climate crisis, foreign policy, the list goes on and on. But with regards to Melania, specifically, apparent joy at the prospect of returning to the White House baffles because she is reported to have loathed it the first time.
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And yet, despite her long-running absence on the campaign trail, she materialized onstage, clapping and showing all her teeth.
Save for a small handful of appearances at the big-ticket events—the Republican National Convention in July and the Madison Square Garden rally last month, for example—Melania has been a phantom at her husband‘s rallies all year. Although she’s agreed to several interviews in recent months, and even defended her husband against the fascism allegations in one of them, she was mostly promoting her New York Times bestselling memoir.
In the context of her feelings about being first lady, that reticence made sense. “Hates” was the word one anonymous source used to describe her feelings about the job; others claimed she was “very, very unhappy with her life” during Trump’s last term, when she dragged her feet for five months before moving into the East Wing.
Once she actually arrived in Washington, her interest in the role felt tepid. Her main efforts were the vague “Be Best” anti-cyberbullying initiative and that mid-pandemic Rose Garden renovation that earned her so much flak. And then there was her much-maligned holiday decorating, a FLOTUS obligation she resented. “Who gives a f--- about Christmas stuff?” went the quote.
In the obligatory public appearances, she often seemed to be avoiding and/or rejecting physical contact with her husband. On that score, it‘s not clear how much has changed. At the RNC, for example, she appeared to swerve her husband’s attempt at a kiss; she also declined to speak, despite (reportedly) having been urged to.
During her husband’s victory lap on Election Night, however, she accepted a kiss on the cheek and a cordial embrace.
Earlier in the day, Melania accompanied her husband to the polls, wearing sunglasses indoors and a much less enthusiastic expression. That night, however, the sunglasses were off and the grin was on. She even held Trump’s hand.
This time around, it’s not known when or if Melania would return to Washington, D.C. Ahead of the election, another unnamed source claimed that should Trump win, Melania would likely commute to the White House to attend whatever ”functions that she is asked to attend.” She would keep a “private living apartment” in D.C., this person said, but spend most of her time in New York, where her son Barron goes to college, or at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach.
In which case, maybe living elsewhere makes her husband’s reprisal of the presidency easier for her to stomach.
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