WASHINGTON, D.C. — Former President Donald Trump’s selection of Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, to be his vice presidential running mate completes a remarkable political transformation from an Ivy League-educated author and Trump critic to an America-first populist who embraces Trump’s policies. His political journey echoes the path traveled by many who once considered themselves part of the mainstream Republican Party.

Vance rode his Rust Belt roots in Middletown, Ohio, to fame with his 2016 memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” about growing up in rural Appalachia.

Running the lecture circuit that year, he said he would not vote for Donald Trump, arguing the builder-turned-reality-show-star did not represent working-class voters.

“I’m a never Trump guy. I’ve never liked him,” Vance said in a 2016 interview with Charlie Rose.

Eight years later, Vance had made a complete reversal.

“Look, I was wrong about Donald Trump. I didn’t think he was a good president,” Vance said during a FOX News interview on June 21. “He was a great president, and that’s one of the reasons why I’m working so hard to make sure he gets a second term.”

The policy U-turn began when Donald Trump, Jr. read “Hillbilly Elegy” and befriended Vance — whose opinion of Trump, Jr.’s father, had shifted by the time the two first met in 2021.

When Vance ran for Senate in 2022, Trump endorsed him, though he acknowledged in his statement that “like some others JD Vance may have said some not so great things about me in the past, but he gets it now, and I have seen that in spades.”

Trump’s blessing boosted Vance from just one candidate among five in the Republican primary to the frontrunner and ultimately to the Senate.

“I think the president’s endorsement is hugely helpful. I think so many people forget that former President Trump actually delivered on his promises, which is why Ohio Republican voters trust him so much,” Vance said at a campaign stop in May 2022. “The fact that I have the president’s trust and endorsement is a huge part of why we caught fire.”

Since joining the Senate, Vance’s positions on some issues have changed substantially to align with Trump. Vance previously criticized Trump for targeting immigrants. He more recently has echoed Trumpian rhetoric.

“Look, we don’t want to buy more plane tickets to fly illegal immigrants into the 48 united continental United States,” Vance said in an interview in May.

As the 2024 race kicked into gear, Vance made himself increasingly visible on the national stage — campaigning with Trump, attending his New York City court trial and appearing on national TV news shows that Trump is known to watch. Vance has also demonstrated his loyalty by defending Trump in interviews and hedging on whether he would accept the 2024 election results. Vance said he would not have certified the 2020 election results had he been vice president and said he planned to introduce a Senate companion bill to a House resolution stating Trump “did not engage in insurrection.”

Vance’s increased presence fueled speculation he could be Trump’s number two.

“I don’t I don’t know if I was ever in the running or if I still am. I actually have never talked to Donald Trump about it,” Vance said in an interview with Spectrum News’s Harri Leigh in February. “And what I’ve said about VP is I’m very focused on doing my job in the Senate. Of course, if the president asked me, I would have to think seriously about it, because I think it’s important that we reelect Donald Trump.”

Though Trump has helped Vance’s political prospects enormously, Vance could help Trump, too.

Vance is able to articulate Trump’s vision. He also provides relatability. While Trump touts himself as a billionaire, Vance has always played up his humble beginnings.

“I think that my basic strategy here is just to be a real guy who talks about actual issues and doesn’t repeat the same old slogans,” Vance said shortly after entering the Senate race in Ohio in July 2021.

Vance will turn 40 on Aug. 2. He is one of the youngest major party candidates for either president or vice president in U.S. history.

The last major party vice presidential nominee from Ohio was Republican Gov. John Bricker in 1944. He and presidential nominee Thomas Dewey ultimately lost to President Franklin D. Roosevelt.