Former President Donald Trump has announced Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate. Trump is expected to accept the Republican nomination on Thursday. Vance would serve as vice president if elected to office in November. Vance is well-connected in Silicon Valley, including ties to tech investor Peter Thiel.

The selection came on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and just a couple days after Trump survived an attempted assassination at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday. Trump said on Truth Social that a bullet pierced the upper part of his ear, and law enforcement confirmed one spectator died during the incident and two were critically injured. The Secret Service killed the gunman, who the FBI has identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old from Pennsylvania.

After his close call, Trump called for unity, though he quickly returned to more familiar rhetoric railing against what he called legal “Witch Hunts” against him by “the Democrat Justice Department.”

Trump’s pick for running mate has been long-awaited. His last running mate, former Vice President Mike Pence, has stated he would not endorse Trump, who he said “endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol” on January 6th, when rioters stormed the building seeking to stop the election of Joe Biden from being certified. Pence refused to interfere with the election certification.

Vance has positioned himself as a liaison to Silicon Valley, reportedly courting key tech figures to support Trump. Tech investor David Sacks told Axios that Vance had “been instrumental” in making a Trump fundraiser Sacks hosted with fellow investor Chamath Palihapitiya come to life. Vance has also maintained a close relationship with Peter Thiel, one of Silicon Valley’s most famous conservatives, who helped bankroll Vance’s Senate candidacy.

The rumored finalists for the Republican VP candidacy were Vance, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum.

In his Truth Social post announcing his selection, Trump noted that Vance served in the Marine Corps, and graduated from Ohio State University and Yale Law School. He also referenced Vance’s famous book, Hillbilly Elegy, a memoir about his family and hometown of Middletown, Ohio, that was later made into a film. Trump also pointed to Vance’s “very successful business career in Technology and Finance” and said during the campaign, he’d be focused on “the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond….”

Trump is expected to speak at the RNC later this week.