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Ivanka Trump, the second-oldest of President Trump's five children, has spent her entire life in the public eye, and helped run the Trump Organization along with her father and two of her brothers. But she's certainly the most famous Trump child, and she and her husband have a role in the Trump administration. Here's what you need to know about a woman that some joked — but only somewhat — should have been President Trump's running mate.



1. She grew up in the spotlight.

Ivanka Trump and her mother, Ivana, at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in 1994. Getty Images

Born Ivanka Marie Trump in 1981, she was given the diminutive version of her mother Ivana's name. She was born and raised in Manhattan, and her parents divorced when she was 10. Her parents were all over the tabloids for as long as she could remember, and she became well-known as a result. She told GQ that when she was 9 years old, photographers would go up to her outside her school and ask, "So is it true that Marla [Maples] said that your father was the best sex she's ever had?"

Seventeen

At 15, she tried out a modeling career, appearing on the cover of Seventeen and in a Tommy Hilfiger ad campaign, and even walking the runway for Versace and Thierry Mugler. Her parents weren't so keen on the idea. ''This is an interesting case,'' Donald told the New York Times in 1997. ''I am only modestly in favor of this because I understand that that life is a very fast life, and at that age it is always a risky proposition.'' She could only model if she got permission from her school and kept her grades up, and later reflected that she did it to get out of her boarding-school bubble.

According to The Guardian, she quit modeling after high school and later wrote that models were "the meanest, cattiest, bitchiest girls on the planet." She went to Wharton business school, where she graduated summa cum laude, and at first worked an entry-level gig at a different real estate firm to separate herself from the Trump name. But shortly after that, she joined the family business and never looked back. From 2006 until her father announced his run for president, she also was a judge on Celebrity Apprentice.

2. She built her own businesses.

Along with her brothers, Eric and Donald Jr., Ivanka served as an executive vice president of development and acquisition for the Trump Organization. According to the Trump website, some of her main tasks included expanding Trump Hotel brand internationally, determining the interior design of the hotels, and overseeing their international real estate brokerage. She has since stepped down from the role.

But she also has several businesses of her own. She has her own lines of clothing, shoes, handbags, kids' shoes, glasses, and jewelry, and her own lifestyle website. In 2014, she started the #WomenWhoWork initiative on her site, posting articles about career, fashion, and life advice specifically aimed at women looking to climb the corporate ladder. A book with the same title will be available in spring 2017.

3. She's focused on her own family too.

Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner were married at the Trump National Golf Club on Oct. 25, 2009. Getty Images

She met her now-husband, Jared Kushner, in 2007 when a commercial real estate broker and another friend set them up on a business lunch. "They very innocently set us up thinking that our only interest in one another would be transactional," she told Vogue. "Whenever we see them we're like, '[It's] the best deal we ever made!'" Kushner is a real estate developer and the owner of the New York Observer. He is also an Orthodox Jew; Ivanka converted to the religion before their wedding in 2009.

The couple now has three children: Arabella, Joseph, and Theodore.

4. She's always been a Trump family booster.

Ivanka's support of her father and her family name goes way back. In 2003, she participated in the documentary Born Rich, which was directed by Johnson & Johnson heir Jamie Johnson. "No matter what I hear about my parents, about my family, no matter what I read, the fact is that I'm absolutely proud to be a Trump," she said. "For a while I was worried that for my whole life I'd sort of be under my parents' shadow, but it's not a bad shadow to be under." In one clip, she seems relatable as she shows off her childhood bedroom, complete with Poison and Motley Crue posters — but then the camera pans to the incredible view from her high-rise apartment, and you remember she's a Trump.

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Nowadays, it's up to Ivanka to defend her dad who regularly faces accusations of sexism. Back in 2007, her dad told The View, "If Ivanka weren't my daughter, perhaps I'd be dating her." She told Marie Claire that year that Donald was just poking fun at himself. "I mean, I've even heard him say that before," she told the magazine. "He loves seeing people's reaction, when they're flabbergasted. Plus, he was obviously making fun of the fact that he has a tendency to date younger women."

She has steadfastly insisted that her father supports women. "He 100 percent believes in equality of gender, so, yes, absolutely — socially, politically, and economically [he is a feminist]," she told Town & Country in May. "[He has] confidence in women to do any job that a man can do, and my whole life has been proof of that."

5. She's reportedly a power player behind the scenes.

At first, Ivanka insisted that she wasn't a part of the campaign, and was simply giving her dad advice and challenging him at times, like any daughter would do. But later, reports surfaced that she had major decision-making power in the Trump campaign.

The Washington Post reported that Donald met with Ivanka, Donald Jr., Eric, and Kushner before firing his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski. According to Vanity Fair, it was juicier than that: apparently, Ivanka threatened to leave the campaign if Lewandowski stuck around.

Kushner has even said that when Ivanka was about to have a baby, Donald called her three times a day when she couldn't be by his side. Time also reported that the siblings met with Gov. Mike Pence before their father picked him as his running mate.

6. Her new political role might cost her one friend: Chelsea Clinton.

Ivanka Trump and Chelsea Clinton attend the 2014 Glamour Women of the Year Awards in New York. Getty Images

Ivanka Trump and Chelsea Clinton hung out in the same crowd before their parents ran against each other for president. Their husbands introduced them several years ago, and they obviously have a ton in common. "I am absolutely friends with Ivanka and I am grateful for her friendship," Chelsea told Cosmopolitan.com in January, adding that the two never discuss politics. "And I'm always going to believe, because this is how my parents raised me, that friendship is more important than politics."

But by March, that situation had changed, according to Politico. The two political kids have reportedly decided not to be seen with one another in public because of the election. The two weren't BFFs but saw each other a few times a year, and things were great when their parents weren't attacking one another. "They both feel in their own way a massive responsibility to do something with how they were raised," an associate told Politico. "Both are really ambitious, both feel obligated to do something valuable."

In April, Ivanka gave a very diplomatic response to a question about Chelsea. "Well, look, we're children and we love our parents, so that's the great equalizer, and that's the great common ground," she said. "But, you know, the last 10 months have really been a whole different level. So I think that she would probably say the same about her mother, so she's probably very proud of her mother, and we certainly would share that, I would think."

7. There's been a campaign to boycott her businesses.

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Updated list. Now includes Marshalls. If you'd rather not see the name "Trump" anymore while you're shopping, call these stores. Tell them. pic.twitter.com/4xXkGcqU4X — Shannon (not Ann) Coulter (@shannoncoulter) October 14, 2016

After audio leaked of Trump bragging he could grab women "by the pussy" and get away with it because he was famous, Ivanka still stood by her father. That was the last straw for many women who liked Ivanka, but not her father. According to The Guardian, Shannon Coulter started the hashtag #GrabYourWallet to encourage people to boycott Ivanka's businesses. “If Ivanka Trump had distanced herself from the campaign I would not be boycotting her. But something changed for me when that tape was released,” she told the newspaper. "I think she is being used to whitewash the candidate and make him more palatable."



Ivanka responded to the campaign in an interview with Good Morning America. "The beauty of America is people can do what they like, but I'd prefer to talk to the millions — the tens of millions — of American women who are inspired by the brand and the message that I've created," she said. "My advocacy of women, trying to empower them in every aspect of their lives, started long before the presidential campaign did. I've never politicized that message. People who are seeking to politicize it because they disagree with the politics of my father — there's nothing I can do to change that."

8. She's been called out for mixing business and politics — more than once.

Back in July, Ivanka gave a speech at the RNC on behalf of her father. Shortly after, she sent out this tweet, which said, "Shop Ivanka's look from her #RNC speech" and included a link to the dress she designed and wore:

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Twitter users were not happy, with one person writing, "Unbelievable. @IvankaTrump is using her speech to the RNC to market her clothing line."



More recently, Ivanka appeared on 60 Minutes alongside her father, President-elect Donald Trump. Afterwards, members of the media received a "style alert" email from Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry's vice president of sales, Monica Marder. The 18K gold bracelet featured in the email retails for $10,800.

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Email sent to journalists by an @IvankaTrump employee, hawking the goods she wore on @60Minutes. pic.twitter.com/aCpNbBBArg — katie rosman (@katierosman) November 15, 2016

Across Twitter, people critiqued the email, saying that Ivanka should not be using her father's political office as a way to further her own company:



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not appropriate behavior for daughter of president-elect. profiting from office is not a thing we do. @60Minutes — Very Legal and Very Cool Elayne (@chatelainedc) November 15, 2016

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I thought I was watching an interview on @CBS, not the Home Shopping Network. — Ron Pragides (@mrp) November 15, 2016

Abigail Klem, the president of Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry later told NBC News in a statement that Marder "was following customary protocol" and was "still making adjustments post-election. We are proactively discussing new policies and procedures with all of our partners going forward."

9. She has security clearance and an office in the West Wing.

In an unprecedented move confirming her political influence as Trump's daughter, Ivanka got her very own office in the West Wing of the White House, as well as government-issued communications devices and security clearance to access classified information. Before she had an official role in her father's administration, she planned to serve as an unofficial adviser and agreed to follow the same ethics rules that would apply if she were a government employee.

"Our view is that the conservative approach is for Ivanka to voluntarily comply with the rules that would apply if she were a government employee, even though she is not," attorney and ethics adviser Jamie Gorelick said in a statement. "The White House Counsel's Office agrees with that approach."

Not everyone was so comfortable just going along with that promise. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Tom Carper sent a letter to Walter Shaub, director of the Office of Government Ethics, asking for more information about how exactly Ivanka would comply with ethics rules. "Ms. Trump's increasing, albeit unspecified, White House role, her potential conflicts of interest, and her commitment to voluntarily comply with relevant ethics and conflicts of interest laws have resulted in substantial confusion," they wrote.

On March 29, 2017, Ivanka took on an official role in her father's administration as an unpaid special assistant to the president, according to the New York Times.

In a statement, Ivanka said, "I have heard the concerns some have with my advising the president in my personal capacity while voluntarily complying with all ethics rules, and I will instead serve as an unpaid employee in the White House office, subject to all of the same rules as other federal employees."

10. White House aides reportedly have a petty nickname for her.

According to a Vanity Fair story, Ivanka's fellow aides in the West Wing call her "princess royal" behind her back. After she briefly took President Trump's place at a conference table with world leaders at the G-20 summit in July, many were aghast, pointing out that no one elected her. (Though, as German chancellor Angela Merkel pointed out, it's not unusual for a delegate to take the place of a president at these events.)

“Excuse me,” one former Trump adviser told Vanity Fair. “This is not a royal family, and she’s not the princess royal."

This story was originally published on July 21 and has been updated.

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