Donald Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy Mocked for Awkward Interaction at Rally Following Iowa Caucus

Former President Donald Trump and his former GOP primary rival Vivek Ramaswamy shared an awkward moment with one another on Tuesday, January 16, at a Trump rally in Atkinson, N.H., after Trump had a runaway victory in Iowa.

Ramaswamy delivered a speech for Trump, urging New Hampshire Republicans to vote for the ex-prez before giving a strange embrace to Trump.

The primary dropout tried to give his former rival a handshake. At the same time, Trump went for a hug, leading the two to awkwardly embrace one another — all while Ramaswamy appeared to brush his hand on the former president's face.

During the rally, several Trump supporters began to chant "VP" as Ramaswamy declared, "It is a 1776 moment right now."

“Wow, how was that? Pretty good, right?” Trump said, referring to her former rival's speech. “That was pretty good, and he’s a fantastic guy, and he’s really, uh, he’s got something that’s very special because he started off with a Zippo, and he ended up very strong. He did a great job.”

“I was actually surprised when he called because he was doing well," he added.

Ramaswamy dropped out of the race as the votes in Iowa before all the votes were counted in Iowa. He immediately endorsed Trump on Monday, January 15, after coming fourth in Iowa with just 7.7 percent of the vote.

A clip of the awkward interaction between Trump and Ramaswamy went viral on X, formerly known as Twitter, where the young businessman was mocked for being a "fanboy" of his former rival.

One user shared the clip and wrote, "I don't know much about body language, but this is not how former rivals embrace one another. This is more like a son trying to get approval from their father after getting fourth place."

Another user commented, "I wonder if any of Trump's kids watched this video and went, 'God, I wish that were me.'"

A third user pointed out, "Vivek would probably be one of the better VP picks for Trump... but it will never happen because his name is Vivek Ramaswamy. Trump needs to know how to pronounce his pick's name."

Never miss a story — sign up for the OK! newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what OK! has to offer. It’s gossip too good to wait for!

As the primaries continue, the focus moves to New Hampshire, where the other candidates still in the race hope to pull ahead of Trump.

According to Real Clear Politics, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley is polling only 13.2 points behind Trump with 31 percent of likely New Hampshire Republican voters. Trump currently sits at 44.5 percent while Florida Governor Ron DeSantis holds third place at 5.8 percent.