File photo of Donald Trump’s youngest son, Barron Trump.
| Photo Credit: AP

Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s youngest son, Barron Trump, will not be a delegate representing Florida at the Republican National Convention in July due to prior commitments, the office of his mother Melania said on May 10.

On May 9, a campaign official said Barron Trump, 18, had been selected by the state party as a delegate from Florida, a notable move given that he has kept largely out of the public eye during the campaign.

“While Barron is honoured to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments,” Melania Trump’s office said in a statement.

In Florida, presidential campaigns submit a list of proposed delegates to the state party, which in this case would have included Mr. Barron Trump.

Delegates are allocated following primary contests in each state. While the rules are complex, delegates are typically assigned to represent a candidate at the convention, where the nominee is officially selected.

Mr. Donald Trump is set to face President Joe Biden in November’s presidential election.

Former U.S. president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump sent an unrelated message on his own X rival proving he was still alive. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The account of Donald Trump Jr. on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, was briefly hacked early on September 20, sending a series of offensive tweets, including one falsely announcing the death of his father, former president Donald Trump.

“I’m sad to announce, my father Donald Trump has passed away. I will be running for president in 2024,” read the first message from Donald Trump Jr’s account at 8:25 a.m.

Proving he was still alive, the 77-year-old former president sent an unrelated message on his own X rival, Truth Social at 8:46 a.m. — more than 20 minutes after the fake death announcement, the New York Post reported.

A series of obviously hacked messages quickly followed on Donald Jr’s account, including an inflammatory one saying that “North Korea is about to get smoked”, and another pretending to show Donald Jr saying he had “some interesting messages with Jeffrey Epstein”, more than four years after the paedophile died in his Manhattan lockup.

Other tweets on his account read “F–k Joe Biden”, calling him a “stupid ass” n-word, and another claiming crypto personality Richard Heart, who was accused of stealing $12 million from investors, is innocent.

The tweets have now been deleted and the account restored.

The Trump Organisation did not immediately respond to a request for comment early on Wednesday, the report said.