Melania and Donald Trump's Marriage Seems to Be on Shaky Ground

Married in 2005, Melania Trump (née Knauss) and Donald Trump don’t have the same sort of love story as many other celebrity couples. And when we think back to classic couples of the White House, the spouses often meet as family friends or while in law school, such as in the case of Michelle and Barack Obama. But Melania and Donald’s story isn’t quite as romantic.

The two met in 1998 at a party when Melania was a model. After an on-and-off relationship, they got married and had their son, Barron, together in 2006. Now, as Trump hustles on the campaign trail to get re-elected to a second term in 2024 just after he was convicted of 34 charges related to hush money paid to Stormy Daniels, rumors of divorce are swirling. The rumors began during Trump’s 2020 loss and now that he’s a felon, there’s even more fuel to the fire.

Now that Trump is officially a convicted felon, people can’t help but wonder if Melania is going to divorce her potentially prison-bound husband. With at least one mugshot under his belt and 34 guilty counts to his name, he isn't the picture-perfect American husband she might have dreamed of.

Ironically, Melania is an Eastern European immigrant from Slovenia (ironic because of Trump’s strict anti-immigration policies), which has contributed to many people’s belief that she’s contractually obligated to stay married to Trump for financial reasons. When they married, she may have expected a big payout upon his death and a luxurious American life. But she likely never expected to be the First Lady of the United States.

When Trump wanted Melania to move into the White House, their pre-nuptial agreement had to be renegotiated, proving that finances are a major factor in their marriage. Again in 2020, after Trump lost the election, their prenup was altered, spawning the first rumors of divorce. In 2023, after a gossip site shared info from unnamed sources, the divorce rumors were once again in full swing. But even after Trump’s 2024 conviction, Melania hasn't spoken publicly about if she intends to divorce him.

In 2023, Fani Willis’s Fulton County investigation that led to a 98-page criminal indictment also led to rumors that Melania was looking towards divorce. A tweet with almost 1 million views claimed, “It appears that leaked emails have revealed Melania Trump's apparent threats of divorce towards Donald Trump, along with her inquiries about his pension and the terms she would be entitled to in a $2 billion divorce settlement … Apparently, as I said, she's left him. It's over."

However, this is based off of an article posted on Radar, which has little to no fact checking of its sources. The article states that emails between the former POTUS and First Lady show hints of divorce on the table. These “sources” alleged, “If these emails were to go public, it would rip the Band-Aid off Donald and Melania's marriage, and almost certainly drive her into divorce court!"

If there is any truth to this, though, Melania could just be waiting for the perfect moment to take her future into her own hands. If she waits until Trump passes away, which could be in the next few years considering his health, she could get a bigger payout.

On the other hand, Trump’s multiple convictions could mean that most of the money Melania would have received will be going to lawyers and appeals. If that’s the case, divorce could be the only way to actually secure money she expected to receive from their marriage, if any. We also can’t count out a true marriage of love between Melania and Trump. But now that the Stormy Daniels scandal is legally on the books, Melania might be ready to leave Trump’s antics behind.

However, there’s no way of knowing what Melania’s intentions are until she speaks publicly about them, which may never happen. At the very least, we doubt she’ll act before the 2024 election results — if Trump wins, Melania might not be ready to say goodbye to her First Lady title.