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Back in 2017, Donald Trump and Melania Trump's son Barron Trump was just 10 years old...and not an eye-catching 6-foot-7.
At the start of his dad’s first term as president, Barron and his mom remained at New York City's Trump Tower so he could finish out the school year before moving to Washington, D.C. And during those four years, Melania prioritized her son—and his privacy.
However, time works in mysterious ways and the first kid is now 18. Barron made a rare public appearance on Inauguration Day Jan. 20, 2025 to see his father sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, with Trump assuming the position from No. 46 Joe Biden after having defeated Democratic challenger Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
Today, Barron is in college at New York University. However, Melania has suggested he’ll still visit the White House during his dad’s second term.
“Whatever he would like do,” the first lady replied in a Jan. 13 interview with Fox and Friends when asked if her son’s friends will be allowed to come and visit, too. “I feel that, as children, we have them until they are 18-19 years old. We teach them, we guide them, and then we give them the wings to fly. I always respect Barron’s yes and no and what he likes to do, where he would like to be.”
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And Barron’s path forward—at least legally speaking—is his own.
"He is a very strong-minded, very special, smart boy," Melania told Parenting.com of her then-6-year-old in 2012. "He is independent and opinionated and knows exactly what he wants. Sometimes I call him little Donald. He is a mixture of us in looks, but his personality is why I call him little Donald."
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And a couple months shy of his 9th birthday, Barron was "terrific," according to his father.
"He's a great boy," Trump told E! News in January 2015. "He's working hard, he's starting the school thing."
In 2016, during a debate against Hillary Clinton, the presidential candidate marveled at his 10-year-old's tech-savvy. "He is so good with computers," he said, "it's unbelievable."
With Barron's dad headed for the Oval Office again, get to know the first son:
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Who is Barron Trump?
Born March 20, 2006, Barron is the only child of Donald Trump and third wife Melania Trump. The former president is also dad to Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump with his late ex-wife Ivana Trump and daughter Tiffany Trump with second ex-wife Marla Maples.
Barron was a name his dad "always loved" but "never had the courage to use" when his other kids were born, the Celebrity Apprentice host said on The Oprah Winfrey Show in May 2006. "I gave the idea to Melania and then I was going to take it away at the very end and she said, 'You can't take it away! I’ve been calling him Barron while he’s been in my stomach and you just can't take it away!'"
Where did Barron Trump go to school?
Before his dad became president, Barron attended the private Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School in Manhattan, where, according to the school's website, tuition for the 2024-2025 term starts at $61,770 for pre-K.
Once the whole family had moved into the White House, Barron started going to St. Andrew's Episcopal School in Potomac, Md., in the fall of 2017. A year of middle school at the private co-ed institution currently costs $49,680.
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"It is known for its diverse community and commitment to academic excellence," Melania said in a May 2017 statement, explaining their choice. "The mission of St. Andrew's is 'to know and inspire each child in an inclusive community dedicated to exceptional teaching, learning and service,' all of which appealed to our family."
After Barron's dad lost his bid for re-election to President Joe Biden in 2020, the Trumps moved to Florida and the teen started at Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach.
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Barron graduated from Oxbridge in May with both parents in attendance, the former president writing on his social media platform Truth Social, per ABC News, "Going to Barron's High School Graduation. Great student, wonderful boy! Very exciting! DJT."
In September, Barron started college at New York University, where he's a student at the Stern School of Business. His father and all of his siblings—except for Eric, who went to Georgetown—attended the University of Pennsylvania as undergraduates.
How tall is Barron Trump?
Few things about the first son caught the public's attention more during the time he lived in the White House than his height.
Whenever Barron was photographed walking across the lawn it seemed as if he'd grown a few inches, the whole world serving as that relative who can't stop marveling over how big he'd gotten. And it wasn't long before he towered over both parents.
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Internet speculation has put the 18-year-old as tall as 6-foot-9, but the Palm Beach Post, which enjoys closer proximity to the family's home at Mar-a-Lago, has him at 6-foot-7.
"I said, 'You're gonna be a basketball player,'" Trump said at a January 2024 campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa, per the Daily Mail. "He said, 'Well, I like soccer, Dad, actually.' I thought...'At your height I like basketball better,' but you can't talk them into everything."
Paying tribute to his mother-in-law Amalija Knavs, who had died days beforehand, the candidate said of her and Melania's dad Viktor Knavs, "Great people, great parents to all of us, really. Great parents, but also to Barron. Boy, did [Amalija] take care of Barron. That's how he got so tall, he only ate her food.'"
Is Barron Trump into politics?
Barron—who voted in his first presidential election in November—hasn't really voiced any political sentiment one way or another aside from attending the 2016 and 2020 Republican National Conventions in support of his father.
He was offered the chance to serve as an at-large delegate to the 2024 convention in Milwaukee, but his mother's office said in a statement that, while he was "honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party," he "regretfully" declined to participate "due to prior commitments."
But, as the 2024 presidential candidate told Philadelphia radio station WHPT in May, Barron "does like politics" and has offered advice.
"It's sort of funny," the 78-year-old added. "He'll tell me sometimes, 'Dad, this is what you have to do.'"
On his Barron-approved to-do list? Apparently The Joe Rogan Experience, where Trump spent three hours chatting on Oct. 25.
"He tells me about all the hot guys," Trump told Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo a couple weeks before he headed to Joe Rogan's Austin studio. "People I never heard about."
Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images
And while Barron wasn't seen at the 2024 RNC with the rest of the family, he did attend a Trump campaign rally for the first time on July 9 in Doral, Fla., where his dad encouraged the teen to make his presence known.
"Where is Barron?" the candidate called from the stage, per the New York Times. "Stand up! Look at him!"
As the crowd started chanting Barron's name, his dad noted, "You’re pretty popular," adding, "He might be more popular than Don and Eric! Welcome to the scene, Barron."
Here's a guide to the whole Trump family, including kids and grandkids:
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Ivana Trump
Ivana Trump was the first wife of President-elect Donald Trump. Born in Gottwaldov, Czechoslovakia—now Zlín of the Czech Republic—in 1949, she rose to fame as a competitive skier. And, thanks to her marriage to Austrian ski instructor Alfred Winklmayr in 1971, Ivana was able to travel often outside of Czechoslovakia.
According to her book Raising Trump, the model met Donald three years after her 1973 divorce during a New York trip, where she'd traveled for a Canadian fashion show ahead of the Montreal Olympics. They wed in 1977 and welcomed three kids: Donald Trump Jr. born in 1977, Ivanka Trump born in 1981 and Eric Trump born in 1984.
The pair's divorce was finalized in 1992 following his affair with Marla Maples, whom he later married.
However, Ivana—who then married Riccardo Mazzucchelli for two years followed by Rossano Rubicondi for less than a year—and Donald remained on good terms.
“Donald during the divorce was brutal,” she told ABC News in 2017. “He took the divorce as a business deal, and he cannot lose. He has to win. So he took about two years. And after the final situation was straightened up, we would just talk and we are friends.”
Ivana died in 2022 at age 73. According to NBC News, the New York City Medical Examiner said she died of “blunt impact injuries” and that her manner of death was an accident. A senior NYC official with direct knowledge added the circumstances were consistent with a fall on the stairs in her New York apartment.
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Donald Trump Jr.
In 1977, Ivana and Donald welcomed their eldest son Donald Trump Jr. He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in finance and real estate from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School in 2000 and began working for his father’s company The Trump Organization in 2001, where he now serves as the executive vice president.
Don Jr. is also a director for both Trump Media & Technology Group Corp and PublicSquare Holdings and part of 1789 Capital firm. In addition, he's been involved in his dad’s political campaigns, including speaking at rallies and the Republican National Convention during his father's presidential runs.
Don Jr. shares five children with his ex-wife, model Vanessa Haydon: Kai (who also made a speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention) Donald III, Tristan, Spencer and Chloe.
Don Jr. was previously engaged to Fox News alum Kimberly Guilfoyle. However, he recently confirmed their split.
"Kimberly and I will never stop caring for each other," he told Page Six Dec. 13, "and will always keep a special bond."
Don Jr. has been sparking romance rumors with socialite Bettina Anderson; however, they have not publicly commented on the dating speculation.
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Ivanka Trump
Four years after the arrival of Don Jr., Donald and Ivana became parents to daughter Ivanka Trump.
Before her father’s presidency, the University of Pennsylvania alum worked at The Trump Organization. But after he was elected in 2016, the fashion brand founder—who had her own eponymous line—took on the role of Advisor to the President.
After her dad announced he would be running for president again in 2024, Ivanka revealed she would be stepping out of the political arena to focus on her family with husband, former White House senior advisor Jared Kushner, and their children Arabella, Joseph and Theodore.
“I love my father very much,” she said in part of a 2022 statement obtained by NBC News. “This time around, I am choosing to prioritize my young children and the private life we are creating as a family. I do not plan to be involved in politics.”
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Eric Trump
Born in 1984, Eric Trump is the third child of Ivana and Donald. He graduated with a degree in finance and management from Georgetown University.
Like his brother, Eric works as executive vice president of The Trump Organization, which he joined in 2007. He is also president of Trump Winery.
Eric is married to Republican National Committee co-chair Lara Trump, with whom he shares kids Luke and Carolina.
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Marla Maples
Marla Maples is Donald’s second wife, whom he met while still married to Ivana.
In Raising Trump, Ivana wrote the actress approached her about the affair during a trip to Aspen in 1989. Still, Marla said on a 2018 episode of the ABC podcast Journeys of Faith with Paula Faris that she “never considered” herself a mistress.
"My intention was to never bring hurt," she continued. "Do I wish more than anything that we could have had this relationship after his divorce papers were signed? Absolutely. I mean, with all my heart. How much heartache would it have saved so many people if I had seen that piece of paper before we got involved? But it didn't happen that way."
Marla and Donald welcomed daughter Tiffany Trump in 1993, and the couple wed later that year. However, the Dancing With the Stars alum and the 47th commander in chief announced their separation four years later and finalized their divorce in 1999.
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Tiffany Trump
After her parents’ breakup, Tiffany Trump relocated with her mother to California.
"She moved us out of New York to get out of the spotlight and let me grow up and find my own identity versus being in the shadow of a name or growing up very young with all that pressure,” Tiffany told People in 2016. “So, she wanted me to have a chance to have a normal childhood. As normal as possible. I think that she did well in that.”
She released her 2011 single “Like a Bird" and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2016 with a B.A. in sociology, focusing on law and society. She then went to Georgetown Law School, where she graduated with a JD in 2020.
In 2022, Tiffany wed Michael Boulos. Her father announced they're expecting their first baby during an October 2024 speech at the Detroit Economic Club. "She’s an exceptional young woman," he said during his remarks. "And she’s going to have a baby. So that’s nice.”
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Melania Trump
Melania Trump is Donald’s third wife and incoming First Lady of the United States. Born in Mesto, Slovenia in 1970, she is the second First Lady to be born outside of the U.S. and the only First Lady to become a naturalized U.S. citizen.
Melania met Donald in New York in 1996 while she was working as a model.
“It was a big fashion party that my friend organized, fashion week, and he invited me,” she recalled on a 2016 episode of On the Record With Greta Van Susteren. “That’s how we met with Donald.”
Melania and Donald married in 2005, and they welcomed son Barron Trump the following year.
In 2024, she released her memoir Melania and she's set to appear in a documentary. Melania has also spoken about where she plans to spend her time during her husband's second presidency.
"I will be in the White House," she told Fox & Friends in an interview that aired Jan. 13. "When I need to be in New York, I will be in New York. When I need to be in Palm Beach, I will be in Palm Beach. My first priority is to be a mom, to be a first lady, to be a wife. And once we're in on January 20, you serve the country."
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Barron Trump
Born in 2006, Barron Trump is Donald and Melania’s only child. While he has lived a more private life—relocating with his parents from New York to live in Washington, D.C. and then Florida—it looked like he might enter the political world after he was selected in May 2024 as a Florida delegate to the Republican National Convention. However, Barron declined the offer.
"While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party,” a statement from Melania’s office shared with NBC News at the time said, “he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments.”
Like studying, perhaps, with Barron starting his freshman year at New York University in 2024. "He was accepted to a lot of colleges," his father told the Daily Mail in an interview published Sept. 4. "He's a very smart guy, and he'll be going to Stern, the business school, which is a great school at NYU."
However, Melania told Fox & Friends in her interview that Barron will come and visit his family at the White House.
(Originally published July 27, 2024, at 4 a.m. PT)
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