Bringing an end to any speculation as to whether he’d be running, former Vice President Mike Pence filed paperwork on Monday to run for president in 2024, making it official.

The former vice president is slated to launch his campaign Wednesday with an event in Iowa, which will be followed that evening by a CNN town hall in Des Moines.

Pence joins a growing field of candidates but enters the race with some of the strongest name recognition of any Republican after serving as vice president in the Trump administration for four years. He previously served as a congressman and as governor of Indiana, and his team believes his lengthy conservative track record will resonate with voters focused on the issues.

He is backed by a super PAC, Committed to America, which launched in mid-May and is co-chaired by former Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) and veteran GOP consultant Scott Reed. The group’s executive director is Bobby Saparow, who managed Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s (R) successful reelection campaign in 2022.

With the paperwork filed, Pence will formally kick off his campaign on Wednesday.

Former Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to announce his 2024 presidential campaign in Des Moines, Iowa on June 7, which will also be his 64th birthday. The Pence campaign plans to show a video followed by an announcement speech. The campaign kickoff event will come before a previously announced Town Hall.

Pence, who served as Indiana’s governor from 2013 to 2017, before becoming Donald Trump’s vice president, is one of three sitting or former governors set to throw their hats into the presidential race this week. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is also set to announce his bid for the White House on Tuesday. Additionally, North Dakota’s Doug Burgum is expected to launch his own bid sometime this week.

They’ll join three other governors already in the race: former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, former South Carolina Governor (and UN Ambassador) Nikki Haley, and current Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. And there were rumblings that New Hampshire’s Chris Sununu may join the fray, as well, though he apparently quashed those on Monday.

Pence’s biggest challenge, of course, will be peeling off supporters of his former boss. While Pence served ably and loyally as vice president throughout Trump’s presidency, Trump has remained sharply critical of Pence’s decision to certify the 2020 election on January 6, 2021, and Trump’s most ardent supporters are likely to have little interest in throwing their support Pence’s way.

Pence will likely attempt to distinguish himself from the rest of the (growing) pack by emphasizing his committed pro-life stance. He’s also championed the notion of entitlement reform. With a national polling average currently at 3.8 percent, trailing Trump, DeSantis, and Haley, Pence’s potential path to claiming the GOP nomination is exceedingly narrow, but it appears he’s committed to entering the mix.

Today, American Freedom is under attack. Big media, big government, and big business are advancing a radical left agenda. But the cure for what ails America is Conservative Republican Leadership! pic.twitter.com/PU1DMK2NXk

— Mike Pence (@Mike_Pence) June 3, 2023