Kai Trump Is Growing Up Fast

When you start perusing the Trump family tree, you realize that there are, er, a lot of them, many of whom you might not even know existed. Until very recently, Kai Trump was one of those elusive Trumps who only made a public appearance here and there. Sure, she's been visible on the golf course (clearly, it runs in the family), but other than that, she's pretty much been flying under the radar.

So where does she fit into the Trump family tree? For pundits not entirely in the know, Kai is one of Donald Trump's 10 (as of this writing) grandchildren, and the daughter of Donald Trump Jr. and his ex-wife, Vanessa Trump. She was born in 2007 and is the oldest of four siblings. Her name is an ode to her mother's father, a Danish musician who went by Kai Ewans. Kai shot to fame in 2024 when she made a speech at the Republican National Convention. Her presence appeared to be an attempt to further Donald's image as a loving and caring presidential candidate, and Kai was the perfect Trump for the job.

Kai was already social media famous before she stepped onto the RNC stage. Politico noted that her Instagram followers were at a staggering 131,000 prior to her speech and skyrocketed to 139,000 right after. Kai has grown up fast, so here's a rundown of everything you need to know about who she is and what her future plans are.

Kai Trump has a YouTube channel that boasts 17,500 subscribers, even though it only has two videos. In one 5-minute clip titled "Get to know Kai Trump," Donald Trump's oldest granddaughter explains that she was only 2 when she took her first stab at golfing. "My mom used to throw me golf balls on the putting green and I would just have to hit them," she explained.

Kai's extended tenure on the golf course has paid off. In 2023, she outshined the competition at the Trump International golf tournament in West Palm Beach, Florida. She won the Women's Club Championship and took to Instagram to celebrate her victory. "I am really ecited [sic] to have won the ladies club championship @trumpgolfpalmbeach. Great competition from some impressive players," she wrote alongside pictures of her grinning with her family members, including Donald. "I shot even both days and won both matches. Very proud of my game and where it's heading but there is always room for improvement. I would like to thank my parents, family and the amazing team at @trumpgolf."

Kai's mom, Vanessa Trump, congratulated her daughter in the comments and praised her for juggling all her responsibilities so well. "You practice and trained hard for your tournament! It was very well deserved! You managed to also stay on top of your school work and maintain your honors roll!" she wrote.

The rumored reasons Donald Trump Jr. and Vanessa Trump got divorced are plenty, but the rumors that have stuck are those of alleged infidelity. It's said that Don Jr. cheated on his wife in 2011 with Aubrey O'Day, who was a contestant on "Celebrity Apprentice." Vanessa, too, is said to have been unfaithful, with rumors of her having a clandestine romance with a Secret Service agent.

While their kids were still fairly young when they divorced in 2018, Kai Trump was old enough to understand what was going on, and it couldn't have been easy for her. However, a judge handling the couple's court case actually applauded Vanessa and Don Jr. for handling their divorce like adults. "I very much would like to commend both of you for working out whatever differences you may have had regarding those issues and committing to co-parenting with each other, " Judge Michael Katz, who oversaw the case, told the couple (via Page Six). "You have prioritized your children and taken steps to shield them from what could have been an invasive litigation process. Not everyone is able to do that."

The judge's compliments came after it was widely reported that the couple's divorce went from uncontested to contested, but given Katz's statements, Vanessa and Don Jr. clearly managed to hash things out without too much drama, which must be a big plus for Kai and her siblings, given how messy public divorces can get.

Kai Trump's appearance at the 2024 Republican National Convention wasn't her first rodeo. She's been spotted at events supporting her grandfather over the years. In 2015, she was pictured alongside her parents as the Trump family posed for pictures after Donald Trump officially announced his 2016 presidential bid. When the Trump family made an appearance on the "Today" show early in 2016, Kai could be seen beaming alongside her grandfather and other family members, and after Donald emerged the victor of the 2016 election, Kai was once again seen supporting her grandfather at his inauguration ceremony. In 2018, she also appeared in photographs taken at the annual White House Easter Egg Roll as she competed alongside her siblings and other family members.

Kai has, of course, also been spotted on the golf course with Donald and was present at some of the former president's golf course openings and tournaments. Now that she's made her debut at the RNC, it's possible that we might start to see more of Kai on the campaign trail.

Kai Trump has big dreams, one of which is to become a professional golfer. She's well on her way to realizing that goal. On her Sports Recruits profile, Kai mentions that she's been playing for her high school's varsity golf team and serves as captain. "[I] push myself to achieve my academic and athletic goals" her profile reads. "Golf has always been a massive part of my life and is my biggest passion. I always aspire to be a leader and a positive figure on and off the golf course. I hope to continue my athletic career at the college level."

During an interview with Fox News, Kai doubled down on her desire to become a pro golfer, saying that her grandfather always asks her how her game is going and encourages her to keep playing. During her speech at the Republican National Convention, Kai also joked that Donald Trump would try to get in her head whenever they're playing on different teams. "He's always surprised that I don't let him get to me, but I have to remind him I'm a Trump too," she quipped.

While all eyes were on Melania Trump's statement after Donald Trump's attempted assassination, his grandchildren were trying to make sense of what happened. Kai Trump first addressed the incident on Instagram, posting a picture taken of her grandfather shortly after the would-be assassin's bullet grazed his ear. "We love you Grandpa. Never stop fighting!" she captioned the post.

While addressing the crowd at the Republican National Convention, Kai shared the shock she experienced when she heard the news of the shooting at Trump's rally. "I was shocked when I heard that he has been shot. And I just wanted to know if he was okay," she said. "It was heartbreaking that someone would do that to another person. A lot of people have put my grandpa through hell and he's still standing," she concluded.

During an interview with Fox News, Kai said that many of her friends heard the news of the assassination attempt before she did, and she got quite the fright when she picked up her phone to see tons of messages expressing support to her and her family. "After 10 minutes, we finally realized what was going on and it was very heartbreaking," she said. When asked what she thought about her grandfather pumping his fist in the air after surviving the shooting, Kai said that she'd never seen anything quite like it. "I thought it was so amazing and so strong, and you can't fake that moment at all," she said.

There's no arguing that Kai Trump gets to see a different side of Donald Trump than we do, and she told Fox News that she often finds it hard to see the way the media portrays her grandfather. She explained that she spends a lot of time with him and knows him very well, and what she sees in the news isn't the person she knows at all. "He's just to me a normal grandpa. He gives us whatever we want, he's always looking out for us, he's always wanting to know how we're doing," Kai said. "So it's frustrating when you see people playing him as an image that he's not. It's hard seeing that."

Kai also addressed her grandfather's legal woes, admitting that she was worried about him going to prison and that it was a scary thought for her entire family, especially her younger siblings. "It was sad seeing that because it was all just made-up stuff," she said, adding that despite his court trials, Donald was still regularly checking in with her to hear how she was doing at school and on the golf course. "He always catches up and checks on me," she said.

When Kai Trump made her debut at the 2024 Republican National Convention, it was with the goal to show voters the softer side of her rambunctious grandfather, Donald Trump. Kai's father, Donald Trump Jr., introduced her to the crowd, who erupted into wild cheers. Kai held her own on the stage during her nearly 4-minute speech, telling the audience all about the grandfatherly side of Donald Trump.

"To me, he's just a normal grandpa. He gives us candy and soda when our parents aren't looking. He always wants to know how we're doing in school," Kai said. "When I made the high honor roll, he printed it out to show his friends how proud he was of me." Kai shared how her grandfather would often make calls to her while she was at school, completely forgetting that she's actually supposed to be in class. He'd then ask her how she's doing, how school's going, and how her golf game is coming along before telling her about his latest game. "But then I have to remind him that I'm in school, and I'll have to call him back later," Kai said as loud cheers erupted.

Kai praised Donald for encouraging her to become the most successful version of herself. "Obviously, he sets the bar pretty high. But who knows, maybe one day I'll catch him," she quipped.

Donald Trump Jr. went full overbearing dad after Kai Trump's Republican National Convention debut. He told Fox News host Laura Ingraham that he was rethinking his decision allowing Kai to make a speech at the convention after Ingraham told him that plenty of teenage boys were falling over their feet to meet Kai after her speech.

"I'm being told, by the way, that your daughter has been just swarmed in this arena by teenage boys," Ingraham told Don Jr., who replied, "Get away, you little b*****ds! You stay away!" This was probably a tad (read: very) embarrassing for Kai. "She has a big fan club," Ingraham added. "She's trending on the internet more than you." Kai's father, shaking his head, replied, "Perhaps I'll regret picking up that phone and saying, 'Sure you can speak there.' But I had to do that for her because she needed to do that for her grandpa."

Don Jr. also revealed during the interview that Kai was the one who approached him with the idea of speaking at the convention and that claims of it being a political stunt couldn't be farther from the truth.

Kai Trump seems determined to pursue a career as a professional golfer, but if there's one thing we know about the Trumps, it's that they enjoy multitasking. There are whispers that Kai might very well decide to dive into politics in addition to becoming a pro athlete. Donald Trump's son, Barron Trump, has begun to show some interest in politics, with reports of some of Donald's more controversial campaign moves being Barron-approved, and Kai might very well follow Barron's lead in the future.

Ever since Kai's speech at the Republican National Convention, the media has been nitpicking her words, trying to figure out if there were any hidden meanings behind them. Style has pointed out that Kai's reference to her grandfather always pushing her to be her best and become successful might hint that Donald is grooming his eldest granddaughter to follow in his footsteps. Kai did mention that her grandfather sets a pretty high standard, which she hopes to reach, but whether she meant on the golf course, in the White House, or both is unclear.

One thing's for sure, her speech's closing statement made her sound like a politician in the making. "He [Donald] truly wants the best for this country, and he will fight every single day to make America great again," Kai concluded to loud cheers. Brace yourselves, folks, there's another Trump on the horizon.