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Barron Trump, the youngest son of former President Donald Trump, began his freshman year of college at New York University this week, his father confirmed in a video interview with the Daily Mail on Wednesday (September 4).
Barron, 18, was spotted with Secret Service agents on the NYU campus in several photos shared online prior to his father's confirmation.
“He’s a very high aptitude child, but he’s no longer a child,” the elder Trump told the Daily Mail. “He’s just passed into something beyond child-dom. He’s doing great.”
Last month, the former president confirmed that his son would attend a university in New York, but didn't name the school, claiming his team would "soon" make an official announcement.
“He’s always been a very good student, he’s smart,” he added.
Barron was introduced by his father during a rally at Trump National Doral Golf Course in Miami in July, the first time he's was spotted at such an event.
“This is a young man. He just turned 18 – Oh, look at this,” the elder Trump, 78, said as the crowd cheered louder. “A very young man who is now going to college – got into every college he wanted to and he made his choice. He’s a very good guy.”
“This is the first time he’s ever done this, Barron … stand up,” the former president said as his son stood up for a second time and gave the crowd another fist pump and wave in response to the reaction.
“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 got to talk about that,” the elder Trump said, referencing his two older sons who had previously addressed the crowd earlier in the event.
“Welcome to the scene, Barron,” the president said, before claiming that his youngest son “had such a nice, easy life – now it’s a little bit changed.”
In May, Barron was reported to have declined an offer to serve as a Florida delegate to the upcoming Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, which would've marked his official jump into the political arena, due to "prior commitments," according to a statement shared by the office of his mother, former First Lady Melania Trump, to the New York Post. The 18-year-old would have joined his half-siblings Don Jr., Eric and Tiffany in representing the state's 41 at-large delegates, according to Florida GOP chair Evan Power.
“We are fortunate to have a great group of grassroots leaders, elected officials, and members of the Trump family working together as part of the Florida delegation to the 2024 Republican National Convention,” Power said in an emailed statement to the New York Post revealing the group's initial interest in having Barron serve as a delegate.
Trump's oldest daughter, Ivanka, has mostly stayed away from politics since her father's re-election loss in the 2020 presidential election.