Melania Has Been by Donald Trump's Side Since His First Presidential Attempt in 2000

Through all the political turmoil, allegations, and legal issues that president-elect Donald Trump has faced over the years, one thing that has seemed to remain steadfast is his relationship with wife Melania Trump. Of course, there have been rumors floating around that she secretly hates him and uses a body double to replace her during public outings and appearances, but we digress.

Donald and Melania have been married for almost two decades, and their relationship began years before that, while he was still technically married to now-ex Marla Maples. The model has been by his side for four — yes, four — bids for the big seat in the White House, and they have one child together.

Let's take a look at their relationship timeline.

Donald and Melania first met during NYFW 1998, when modeling agent Paolo Zampolli hosted a major party full of celebrities and modeling clients — however, though the businessman instantly became infatuated with model Melania Knauss, per TODAY, he was actually attending the party with another woman, and still hadn't finalized his divorce from Marla Maples.

"He wanted my number, but he was with a date, so of course I didn’t give it to him,” Melania told Harper's Bazaar in 2016. "I said, ‘I am not giving you my number; you give me yours, and I will call you.’" Which, after a few days, she did.

A year later, after he had officially divorced Marla, Trump and Melania began seeing each other more seriously — however, they did break up briefly when Trump tried his hand at presidential politics for the first time.

While it's unknown exactly why Donald and Melania split in 2000, many believe that it had to do with the stress and drama surrounding his unsuccessful attempt at securing the Reform Party's presidential nomination. However, neither his political race nor the breakup lasted long, as the pair reunited later the same year.

After four more years of romance, Donald publicly asked Melania to be his wife while attending the Met Gala together in 2004.

"It was a great surprise,” Melania told The New York Post at the time. "We are very happy together."

Their lavish wedding was held at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. — in a ballroom named after Donald J. Trump himself — with celebrity guests from Bill and Hillary Clinton to Shaquille O'Neal, per the Palm Beach Post. And if you're feeling FOMO, you can snag a piece of their 20-year-old wedding cake for only $1,000. What a steal!

After tying the knot, it wasn't long before the couple publicly began talking about starting a family together — though Trump's perspective on the matter wasn't promising: "If you have the money, having children is great. Now, I know Melania, I’m not going to be doing the diapers. I’m not going to be making the food. I may never see the kids, frankly. No ... I’ll be good father, but I’ll be, you know, doing my deals," he told Larry King.

And in March 2006, the couple welcomed their first and only child together, son Barron William Trump.

Of course, 10 years later, Trump began his political career in earnest, running for president as head of the Republican Party, and his and Melania's relationship became more public as a result.

As of writing, it seems that the two are still going strong, though their opinions on political and social issues may not always align.