Did Mike Pence endorse Harris-Walz for 2024 U.S. election? No, video is edited

What is the claim?

A one-minute video of former United States (U.S.) Vice President Mike Pence is circulating on social media, claiming he said he would vote for current Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, in the 2024 presidential election.

The video, shared on X (formerly Twitter), features the text: "Drumroll please....!! Pence endorses VP Harris & Governor Walz." In the clip, Pence says, “Vote for Kamala Harris as President of the United States or Tim Walz as her running mate. Period, paragraph.”

He is also heard stating, “I cannot endorse President Trump,” his former running mate. As of this fact-check, the post has garnered nearly 9,000 likes and 3,300 reposts. Archived versions of similar posts can be found here and here.

The video has also circulated on Facebook with identical claims. Archived versions of these posts are available here, here, and here.

Screenshots of viral posts circulating on social media. (Source: X/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts) 

However, our investigation reveals that the video has been edited and shared out of context.

What are the facts?

A reverse image search of a screenshot from the viral video led us to the full, unedited version uploaded to YouTube (archived here) by radio host Erick Erickson on August 13, 2024. The video, titled "Vice President Mike Pence at The Gathering," reveals that parts of Pence’s remarks were spliced together to create a false narrative.

Screenshot of video uploaded by Erick Erickson on August 13, 2024. (Source: YouTube/Screenshot)

In the full video, at the 5:41 mark, Pence says: “I could never vote for Kamala Harris as President of the United States or Tim Walz as her running mate.” The viral clip omits the crucial phrase “I could never,” completely altering the meaning of his statement.

Similarly, in the edited clip, Pence’s remarks about Trump and his decision to stay out of the national campaign are misrepresented. The original footage, at the 8:00 timestamp, shows Pence saying: “I cannot support marginalizing the right to life in our party as we saw on the national platform, and between me and my former running mate, I cannot endorse President Trump's continuing assertion that I should have set aside my oath to support and defend the Constitution and acted in a way that would have overturned the election in January 2021.” The viral video omits key parts of this statement (marked in bold), significantly altering its meaning.

Additionally, comments from the 7:18 mark of the YouTube video were selectively used to create the final part of the viral clip. In the original footage, Pence says: “For me, while we must clearly show the American people what’s wrong with the Biden-Harris administration and the Harris-Walz team, I believe we need to stay true to the roots of the conservative movement. And for my part, I’m staying out of the presidential campaign because I just cannot. I cannot endorse this growing abandonment of our allies on the world stage, or ignoring our national debt, which reached $35 trillion just last week.” Once again, the viral clip cuts out critical sections (marked in bold), presenting a misleading narrative.

The full video reveals that Pence’s statements were spliced together from different parts of the interview to falsely suggest he supported Harris and Walz. While Pence has confirmed he will not support Trump in the upcoming election, he clearly stated that he would not vote for Harris and Walz either.

The verdict

The video claiming Mike Pence endorsed Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 U.S. presidential election is misleading. It was edited to distort Pence's actual statements.