'Where's Barron?' Donald Trump's youngest son notably absent from touching family moment that closed out Republican National Convention in Milwaukee
- The RNC ended with all of Trump's family members on stage except Barron
- The teen has made campaign appearances for his father recently
- READ MORE: The growing MAGA cult around Barron Trump
There was one glaring 6-foot-7 omission from the Trump family moment that closed out the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Thursday night.
Barron Trump, 18, who has recently made campaign appearances alongside his father, was the only member of the family who was not present for the photo op, which saw the first campaign appearances of his mother, Melania, and sister, Ivanka.
It was widely reported in May that Barron would be one of the Florida delegates who would nominate Trump to be the Republican nominee for president. On Friday morning, the phrase 'Where's Barron?' became a trending topic on X.
Melania's office quickly shut down those reports. 'While Barron is honored to have been chosen… he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments,' a statement from her office said.
On Thursday, the Trump campaign reiterated that Barron would not be in attendance.
During his rambling address, Trump paid a special tribute to his youngest child.
'I also wanna thank my entire family for being here. Don, Kimberly, Ivanka and Jared. Eric and Lara. Tiffany and Michael. Barron... We love our Barron.'
The Trump family showed up en masse to celebration Donald Trump's nomination as the Republican candidate for the presidency in 2024
The notable absentee was Barron Trump, 18, shown here at a rally for his father in Florida last week
Three of Barron's siblings, Don Jr., Eric, and Tiffany, did serve as delegates for the Sunshine State while the brothers addressed the event individually on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.
Meanwhile, Barron's niece, Kai, 17, was one of the breakout stars of the convention as she spoke on stage in introducing her father, Don Jr., and talking lovingly about her grandfather.
Barron's mother, known to be extremely protective of her son, emerged at the convention, as the Trump campaign announced, moments before her husband's acceptance speech.
CNN's Kaitlan Collins reports that operatives in the Trump campaign tried 'really hard' to convince Melania to make a speech at the convention, as she did in 2016 and 2020, but the former first lady was not interested.
Barron has long been the most private of all of his siblings, with the possible exception of Tiffany.
In January 2024, he mourned the loss of his grandmother, Melania's mother, Amalija, who passed away at the age of 78. Barron is reported to be very close to his mother's side of the family.
In March, he turned 18, which prompted new found media interest in him.
Melania Trump confirmed in May that despite reports, her son would not be serving as a delegate for his father at the convention
Trump appeared to be shocked when Melania came on stage at the end of his speech
The family affair was notable by the absence of Barron Trump
One of Trump's grandsons plays with the balloons at the conclusion of the Republican National Convention
During his father's trial, in which he was found guilty of falsifying business records in order to pay off a porn star with whom he's alleged to have had sex with when Barron was just a few months old, Trump was allowed to leave proceedings in order to attend his high school graduation.
On July 9, Barron made his bow at a Trump rally in Miami where his dad heaped praise on him.
'That’s the first time he’s done it. That’s the first time, right? You’re pretty popular—he might be more popular than Don and Eric. We gotta talk about this,' the former Apprentice host told the audience.
He also spoke glowingly about his son in an interview with Logan Paul in June.
'He's a big boy - six foot nine,' Trump claimed of his youngest son during the wide-ranging sit down posted online.
'And I couldn't get him to play basketball. He plays soccer,' Trump said. 'He's a good athlete too. Good student, good athlete.'
'Good looking guy, but he's a tall one, no question about that,' Trump went on about his kid.
The ex-president joked he didn't want to take pictures next to his son because of how tall he is.
'Maybe we ought to make him a fighter,' Trump said before Paul, a professional wrestler, cut him off: 'no, no.'
Barron was not present in Butler when an attempt was made on his father's life by crazed gunman Thomas Crooks, 20.
Trump insider Richard Grenell told Bloomberg this week that the assassination attempt on Trump, coupled with Barron going off to college, have made this a hard year for Melania.
'I think she’s shaken. Barron goes to school this summer, so it’s a difficult time for parents to go from having your child around all the time to leaving the nest.'
It remains unclear which school Barron will attend amid reports that Melania will follow him wherever he goes, rather than live with her husband, even if Trump wins in November.
