Melania Trump hit headlines this week when sources suggested she may not live with her husband should he be re-elected, breaking a two-and-a-half centuries tradition for women of the White House.
But to anybody familiar with the fiercely independent model-turned-first lady, the news will come as no surprise.
Melania has been steadily distancing herself from frontline politics for years, having previously admitted she has her ‘own mind’ – something she insists Trump ‘likes’ about her.
She was notably absent from his court hearings in May and even long before that – during her husband’s first term in office – she eschewed the typical responsibilities of a first lady.
But is this separation of their personal and political lives the secret to their 19-year marriage? Here DailyMail.com looks back at their unconventional and deeply independent partnership.
Melania has earnt a reputation of being more than just Donald Trump ‘s rich wife – she has also made it clear that she is her own person outside of her headline-charting husband
Shortly after Trump was sworn into office in 2016, Melania gave an interview asserting her wish to stay out of the spotlight.
‘I’m choosing not to go political in public because that is my husband’s job,’ she told Harper’s Bazaar.
‘I’m very political in my private life, and between me and my husband I know everything that is going on. I have my own mind. I am my own person, and I think my husband likes that about me.’
Instead, she has repeatedly insisted her main priority is son Barron, whom she gave birth to in 2006 when she was 35.
Despite being able to have as many nannies as she pleased, the Slovenian-born mother chose to raise him without outside help.
‘I like to be hands-on. I think it’s very important. He needs somebody as a parent there, so I am with him all the time. As you know, my husband is traveling all the time,’ she told People magazine in 2015, when Barron was nine.
Melania raised eyebrows on June 14 when she did not attend Trump’s 78th birthday party at the Palm Beach County Convention Center. They are pictured together in November 2022 in Palm Beach, Florida
While the public has speculated tension between the Trumps, with Melania being noticeably absent from his court hearings , that distance has been the key to their marriage. They are pictured in 2016 at the Republican National Convention
Before her life collided with frontline politics, Melania had a career as a model, which started after she was discovered having been discovered by photographer Stane Jerk at the age of 16 in 1987.
She found success in Paris and Milan before moving to New York City, aged 26, later landing a billboard ad for Camel cigarettes shown in times square.
At the time she kept her physique by walking around her home wearing ankle weights and by eating seven pieces of fruit a day – the latter tip she still swears by today.
Her favorites are peaches and apples.
She is also partial to a breakfast smoothie with spinach, carrots and blueberries with apple juice and fat-free yoghurt.
She met Trump in 1998 and the pair tied the knot in 2005.
Now, she is an entrepreneur in her own right thanks to her skin-care line and jewelry collections. She even guest-hosted ‘The View’ on several occasions.
In an interview with Parenting Magazine, Melania explained how she and her husband maintained their own independence.
‘My life is very normal — for me. Maybe for some people they would not think that. But for me it is. I know my husband. We have a great relationship. We are both very independent. We know what our roles are and we are happy with them,’ she said.
‘I don’t think you need to be with your husband every minute of every day.
An Inside Edition episode titled ‘Melania Trump’s Diet’ in 2019
Before meeting her husband, Melania was a model having been discovered by photographer Stane Jerk at the age of 16 in 1987. She is pictured on the front cover of Vogue following her wedding to Trump
The reports indicate she plans to stay away from D.C. and closer to son Barron, 18, (right) amid talk he might attend New York University
‘Both people should do what their passion is and then get together in the mornings and evenings and share and experience life and have a great time. You know that saying, ‘Work hard and play harder?’ That’s what we do.’
Even so, Melania raised eyebrows on June 14 when she did not attend Trump’s 78th birthday party at the Palm Beach County Convention Center.
It may in part be due to the former President’s hatred of the celebration.
His ex-wife Ivanka once famously claimed: ‘Donald hates his birthday.’
And the politician himself reprimanded supporters in Las Vegas who attempted to sing him Happy Birthday this year.
He told them: ‘You know. There’s a certain point at which you don’t want to hear ‘Happy Birthday.’ You just want to pretend the day doesn’t exist.’
But Melania did not even share a birthday message to her husband on social media – generating dozens of headlines.
Now analysts speculate she will not join Trump in the White House should he win another term in November.
She will likely split her time between Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, and New York City – especially with Barron, 18, tipped to attend New York University.
Melania Trump made headlines when rumors circulated that she might not live with her husband if he’s re-elected, upending a two and a half-century precedent for White House wives. The couple are pictured in 2007 with their then-baby son Barron
Melania will reportedly only travel to Washington, D.C. for ceremonial responsibilities like state dinners and other special events.
The decision not to live with in Washington is an unprecedented move for a first lady. But it is not unexpected, given she spent much of her husband’s first term staying in the suburbs of the city with her parents.
‘She’s distancing herself even more from her husband and from the Washington social political scene,’ Kate Andersen Brower, who’s written several books on first ladies, told Axios.
‘I mean, she clearly hated being in Washington.’
Next month, the former first lady is hosting the conservative LGBT group ‘Log Cabin Republicans’ for a fundraiser at Trump Tower in New York.
When asked last month if Americans could expect to see more of her on the campaign trail soon, Melania simply replied: ‘Stay tuned.’