Melania Trump, the successful Slovenian model returning as First Lady of the United States, has been in the spotlight since 2016, when her husband, Donald Trump, was first elected president. With her return to the White House, VOA correspondent Veronica Balderas Iglesias takes a look at her life and some of the expectations surrounding it.
Her parents named her Melanija Knavs. The world recognized her in the role of the First Lady of the United States, Melania Trump.
She was born on April 26, 1970, in Novo Mesto, Slovenia, part of the former Yugoslavia. During her childhood in the town of Sevnica, her father sold cars, while her mother worked in the textile industry.
Melania Knavs was nevertheless interested in fashion, recalls her former school friend, Mirjana Jelancic.
"She also liked to create new clothes from old ones," says Ms. Jelancic, reports A2.
She dropped out of university and, under the new name Melania Knauss, pursued a modeling career in Europe. In the 1990s, her success brought her to the United States.
"As a fashion model and someone who was often invited to lavish parties in New York, that's how I understand she met Donald Trump," says history professor Katherine Jellison, from Ohio University.
Melania Knauss became Melania Trump on January 22, 2005, and gave birth to her first and only son, Barron, a year later. That same year, she also became a U.S. citizen.
Melania Trump's life took another turn when her husband ran for president of the United States in 2016 with the Republican Party and she joined him on the election campaign.
"It's wonderful to be here today with you and my husband. I'm so proud of him," she said at the time.
Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States in January 2017.
As first lady, Melania Trump traveled around the world.
and undertook projects such as the “Be Your Best” campaign that focuses on child well-being, online safety, and opioid abuse.
She kept a lower profile than many first ladies, but still faced intense media attention, notes Professor Jellison.
"She was criticized in some quarters for her fashion choices, for her decision not to move immediately to the White House, for her 'Be the Best' campaign, which was not one of the most successful public service projects by a first lady," says Professor Jellison.
After leaving the White House, Melania Trump practically disappeared from the public eye.
She reappeared time and again to support her husband's reelection bid. And to promote her memoir.
"Writing this memoir has been a deeply personal and reflective journey for me," Mrs. Trump said.
Wisconsin voter Austin Smith has voted for Republican candidate Donald Trump since 2016. He has his own aspirations for the role Melania Trump would play after returning to the White House.
"I would like her to maybe take on some pet projects. One thing I'm really passionate about is, for example, the issue of school food," says voter Austin Smith.
Democratic voter Jasleen Kaur would like Melania Trump to be an "influential first lady."
"Getting out and talking to urban communities, going out all over the country making myself known, not just as a figure behind the president, but as a woman with some kind of power," says voter Kaur.
Analyst Jellison, however, thinks that as a first lady in her second term, Melania Trump will probably continue, for the most part, to avoid the spotlight./ Voice of America (A2 Televizion)
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