Mike Pence is a Republican politician who became a running joke online after Trump picked him as running mate in July 2016, with debate gaffes and photo mishaps fueling multiple viral moments.

Where did Mike Pence come from?

The meme cluster started with Trump's July 15, 2016 announcement, then took off after the October 4, 2016 vice presidential debate and the 'that Mexican thing' line.

What does Mike Pence mean?

Online, the Mike Pence meme is shorthand for stiff, socially conservative Republican politics, often paired with jokes about LGBT rights and his record on HIV funding.

How do you use Mike Pence?

People typically use debate screenshots, the white selfie photo, or the AOL email hack story as reaction images with captions mocking his policies or messaging.

Is Mike Pence still popular?

The core memes are still cited as classic 2016 to 2017 political humor, with the 'that Mexican thing' clip and Planned Parenthood donation template staying in circulation.

Mike Pence

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Published September 6, 2026

Mike Pence, the former Indiana governor tapped as Donald Trump's running mate in July 2016, became a recurring target of political meme culture almost immediately after joining the ticket1. His debate stumbles, an infamously white group selfie, and a private AOL email scandal each spawned their own viral moments across Twitter, Reddit and 4chan through late 2016 and 20172 3.

political satire memes trump memes presidential memes 2016 memes hashtag memes

Overview

The Mike Pence meme is less one image than a cluster of jokes built around the Indiana Republican after Donald Trump named him vice presidential nominee on July 15, 20161. Formats range from auto-tuned debate remixes to donation screenshots to /pol/ nickname threads, all riffing on Pence's stiff delivery, Christian conservative record, and photogenic mishaps3.

The recurring bit is contrast: earnest, buttoned up Pence images paired with punchlines about LGBT rights, sex education, or his positions on funding for HIV programs, which critics linked to conversion therapy4. Reaction images tend to use the debate footage, the selfie stick photo, or press conference stills, usually captioned with dry mockery rather than shitpost surrealism3.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

Twitter / Reddit (viral spread)

Date

2016

Pence entered meme territory the moment Trump announced him as running mate on July 15, 20161. Three days later the Super Deluxe YouTube channel posted an edited version of the introduction speech that became one of the earliest viral Pence remixes5.

The format hardened on October 4, 2016, when Pence faced Tim Kaine in the vice presidential debate and dismissed a criticism of Trump with the line, 'Senator, you whipped out that Mexican thing again'3. Within hours the hashtag #ThatMexicanThing was trending on Twitter, and the Schmoyoho channel followed up with a Songify auto-tune version of the debate6.

How It Spread

After the November 2016 election, musician Bethany Cosentino posted an Instagram note urging followers to donate to Planned Parenthood in Pence's name, and by November 16 the Indianapolis Star reported roughly 20,000 such donations had been logged3. Amy Schumer and Amber Tamblyn boosted the idea, turning the donation screenshot into a template of its own3.

On November 17, 2016, a selfie of House Republicans taken by Pence with a selfie stick went viral for showing an almost entirely white group, and outlets including UpRoxx aggregated the mockery that followed3. On 4chan's /pol/ board, users ran ongoing threads of homophobic Pence nicknames, several of which crossed over to Reddit the same week3.

On March 2, 2017, the Indianapolis Star revealed that Pence had used a personal AOL account for state business as governor and that the account had been hacked in 20162. Old Pence tweets attacking Hillary Clinton's private email use resurfaced, and #PenceEmails trended as a fresh round of jokes2.

How to Use This Meme

The Mike Pence format is typically deployed as a screenshot or short clip paired with dry political commentary. Common conventions include captioning the selfie stick photo with 'diversity' jokes, remixing the 'that Mexican thing' line into audio edits, or overlaying the AOL logo on Pence photos to reference the email hack2 3.