Melania Trump reveals son Barron, 18, has pulled out of being a delegate nominating his father for president because he has 'prior commitments'

Barron Trump is declining Florida's offer to be a delegate to the Republican National Convention this summer, citing 'prior committments,' according to his mother's office.

Melania Trump's office made a statement to DailyMail.com on behalf of her son.

'While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments,' the Office of Melania Trump said.

No futher details were given. 

On Wednesday, Barron, 18, was elected as an at-large delegate to help formally nominate his father Donald Trump as the Republican presidential nominee.

It's now unclear if he will even attend the convention, which takes place in Milwaukee from Monday, July 15 to Thursday, July 18.

Other family members - Don Jr. and his fiancee Kimberly Guilfoyle, Eric Trump, Tiffany Trump and her husband Michael Boulos - are also delegates at large for the state of Florida.

Ivanka Trump, who served as a senior adviser in her father's White House, was the only Trump child not on the delegate list. 

Unlike his half-siblings, Barron Trump was rarely seen during his father's White House years, mainly at the request of his mother Melania who is known to be protective of her son.

Previously, Barron was the target of social media trolls.

Former NBC News executive Mike Sington said Barron was 'fair game' turning 18, the birthday that marks adulthood. He later deleted the tweet after facing harsh backlash and criticism online.

The youngest Trump was defended by many of his former first kids, including Chelsea Clinton.

'I think he's a private citizen,' she told ABC's The View. 'I feel so strongly that if you are a private citizen, you have an unimpeachable right to privacy, and I think the media should leave him alone.' 

And, last year, a Chicago woman was arrested for making death threats against Barron.  

Friday's shock announcement comes after Donald Trump revealed Barron likes politics and enjoys giving his father advice. 

'He's really been a great student. And he does like politics. It's sort of funny,' the former president told 'Kayal and Company' on Philadelphia's Talk Radio 1210 WPHT.

'He'll tell me sometimes, 'Dad, this is what you have to do,'' he added.

Trump also revealed the 18-year-old, who is graduating from high school next week, is weighing what college he might attend. But, he noted, the campus protests have been a factor in that decision.

'He's a senior now in high school, and he'll be going to college. And you know, a lot of, a lot of these choices of colleges are changing because you see what's going on in the last month,' Trump said.

Trump has been critical of the pro-Palestine protests that have turned up on college campuses throughout the nation. He told Time magazine he would call out the National Guard on them.

Barron is considering NYU, the Daily Beast reported, but the school has seen its share protesters and arrests by NYPD. The Trump family has made no announcement about where Barron will go.

The former president also complimented his 6ft7in son's looks. 

'He's a little on the tall side. I will tell you, he's a tall one, but he is a good-looking guy,' Trump said.

The former president spent Friday in a Manhattan court room as New York continues to prosecute him over a hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.

Daniels testified in court this week, talking aboug her sexual encounter with Trump in 2006. She claimed Trump told her at the time he and Melania have separate bedrooms.

Trump has denied the affair.  

Reports of Barron's interest in politics seemed confirmed on Wednesday when the Republican Party of Florida picked him to join his older siblings as an at-large delegate for the state.

The only requirement to be a delegate is to live and vote in the state. Barron, who turned 18 in March, will be eligible to cast his first votes in the August primary and in the November election. 

Barron graduates from Oxbridge Academy in suburban West Palm Beach next week. 

That day - May 17th - will be a busy one for Donald Trump.

He's also scheduled to be the keynote speaker at Minnesota's Lincoln Reagan dinner. 

Barron's graduation ceremony is in the morning so it's feasible Trump could attend both events. 

It's unclear what Barron's plans are for after high school.

But sources told DailyMail.com that the 6ft 7in teen, who has never uttered a word in public, is a steadfast supporter of the Trump 2024 campaign behind the scenes.

Barron was at his father's 2016 presidential announcement and attended the Republican National Conventions in both 2016 and 2020.

He was not at his father's 2024 announcement at Mar-a-Lago. 

In Trump's last two White House campaigns, Don Jr., Eric and Ivanka were heavily involved - speaking at their father's rallies and campaigning for him. Tiffany joined her siblings in the 2020 campaign but Barron stayed out of sight.

He was only 10 when his father became president. 

Barron, who turned 18 last month, returned to the spotlight with Donald Trump's hush-money trial when the former president argued he should be allowed a break from trial to attend Barron Trump's May 17 high school graduation. 

Judge Juan Merchan agreed to allow the break in the trial.