Who will Trump pick as vice president? Many names have come up including Marsha Blackburn, Bill Hagerty

As the first in-person presidential debate nears, the question on many minds is, "Who will be Donald Trump's vice president?" The list of potential running mates for the presumptive Republican candidate is fairly long.

Former President Trump has not declared who will be his running mate for the 2024 election yet, but rumors abound that he will announce the vice president candidate on Thursday during CNN's presidential debate. The shortlist of names includes once-presidential rival South Carolina U.S. Senator Tim Scott and multiple other senators. Eight potential candidates have reportedly risen to the top, but their names aren't the only ones that have been bandied about as potential running mates in the last several weeks.

Names that may surprise some include Tennessee Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty.

But according to Trump, “nobody knows” his vice presidential pick yet, aside from the former president himself. In an NBC News interview, the presidential candidate didn't give any hints of who it may be but did say the individual could be at the debate on Thursday.

Who is on Trump's VP possible shortlist?

Trump's campaign has been vetting eight potential candidates. Here's who in alphabetical order.

• North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum

• Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson.

• Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton

• Florida Rep. Byron Donalds

• Florida Sen. Marco Rubio

• South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott

• New York Rep. Elise Stefanik

• Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance

Trump’s senior advisor, Brian Hughes, explained that the main qualifier for Trump’s VP pick is “a strong leader who will make a great president for eight years after his next four-year term concludes. But anyone telling you they know who or when President Trump will choose his VP is lying unless that person is named Donald J. Trump.”

Is U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn a possible running mate for Trump?

In May, Blackburn's name was thrown into the ring of possible candidates and while the Tennessee senator hasn't made it to any shortlists, she is a staunch supporter of Trump and a critic of Biden and Democrats. Even with that, Blackburn has been part of several bi-partisan bills, including music copyright reform.

Blackburn is up for reelection this year as well and in an interview with Axios stated, "I am up for re-election to continue representing Tennesseans and our conservative values in the United States Senate, and I am focused on that." While also sharing her support of Trump and promising to "help President Trump defeat Joe Biden" this coming November.

Senator Bill Hagerty mentioned as possibility too

Trump's campaign team may be vetting a short list, but the names for possible Trump running mates continues to grow. At the beginning of June, Republican Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty's name was also mentioned as a possible VP candidate.

ABC News sources confirmed that Hagerty's name had come up as a possibility after the Senator appeared at a Trump fundraiser in San Francisco on June 5 and another in Alabama the same week.

When is the presidential debate? What time is the presidential debate?

The first presidential debate will take place Thursday, June 27 at 9 p.m. ET/ 8 p.m. CT at CNN's studios in Georgia.

If you have cable, you can watch the live debate on CNN, CNN International, CNN en Español and CNN Max. The debate will also be streaming on CNN.com. USA TODAY will also stream the debate via YouTube, which takes place on Thursday, June 27, at 9 p.m. ET. Find the link here.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Who has Trump picked for VP? Tim Scott, J.D. Vance not the only names