Who is J.D. Vance? What Arizonans should know about Donald Trump's vice president pick

Shortly after Donald Trump was selected as the Republican 2024 Nominee, the former president announced J.D. Vance would be his 2024 vice-presidential running mate.

The 39-year-old Ohio senator is most notable for being the author of the 2016 bestselling novel "Hillbilly Elegy," which was made into a movie a few years later. A reflection of his youth in Middletown, Ohio, the memoir was a reflection of Vance's Kentuckian roots and its influence on his values and ideals.

Vance “will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.

How are Arizonans responding to this pick

Sen. Anthony Kern and Blake Masters, some of the most influential Arizona Republicans, have already cast their support on social media for the 2024 vice-presidential pick.

Kari Lake, whose 2024 campaign for an Arizona Senate seat has been previously endorsed by Vance, also shared her support online.

Vance's stance on abortion

Where does J.D. Vance stand on abortion rights — and enacting a nation abortion ban versus allowing states to set their own restrictions?

Shortly after Ohio voters enshrined the right to abortion in its constitution in 2023, Vance told reporters, "We can’t give in to the idea that the federal Congress has no role in this matter because if it doesn’t, then the pro-life movement is basically not going to exist, I think, for the next couple of years."

But earlier in July, he called Trump a "pragmatic leader" for his stance that abortion rights should be a topic left up to the states. During his 2022 Senate campaign, Vance has said a national abortion minimum was "totally fine" with him.

JD Vance would be second Catholic VP in history if elected

If elected, Vance would be the second Catholic vice president in U.S. history, following President Joe Biden’s tenure in the position during Barack Obama’s presidency, the National Catholic Register reported.

Vance was at one point a Trump critic. In a 2016 column he penned for USA TODAY, he differentiated the religiosity of Trump’s voters and those of Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, saying the former candidate’s voters had largely “abandoned the faith of their forefathers and myriad social benefits that come with it.”

USA TODAY reporter Karissa Waddick and BrieAnna Frank contributed to this article.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Who is J.D. Vance? What Arizonans should know