Mike Pence
Mike Pence was Vice-President of the United States from 2017 to 2021, and refused his president's demand to overturn an election. Born in Columbus, Indiana in 1959 into a Catholic Democratic family that admired John Kennedy, he became an evangelical Christian at college and a Republican afterwards. He took a law degree at Indiana University. He lost two congressional races in the 1980s, and wrote an essay afterwards, Confessions of a Negative Campaigner, apologising for his tactics. He then spent a decade as a conservative radio and television host in Indiana, describing himself as Rush Limbaugh on decaf. He entered Congress in 2001 and served twelve years, opposing the Medicare drug benefit and the bank bailout from the right and chairing the House Republican Conference. As Governor of Indiana from 2013 he cut taxes and expanded school vouchers. In 2015 he signed a religious freedom law that critics said permitted discrimination against gay customers; the backlash from business was severe enough that he signed an amendment within a week. He also resisted a needle exchange during an HIV outbreak in Scott County before relenting. Trump chose him in 2016 to reassure evangelical voters. He chaired the coronavirus task force in 2020. On 6 January 2021 he presided over the counting of electoral votes and declined to reject slates, stating the vice-president has no such authority. Rioters entered the Capitol chanting about hanging him, and he was evacuated to a loading dock, refusing to leave the building in a Secret Service car. He ran for president in 2024, withdrew before voting began, and declined to endorse Trump.
- Lived: 1959 CE – ?
- Nationality: American
- Roles: vice_president, governor
