Donald Trump won’t be getting an invitation to the wedding of the UK’s Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Neither will UK prime minister Theresa May—or any other head of state, for that matter.
Confirming the move, a Kensington Palace spokesperson told Quartz:
It has been decided that an official list of political leaders – both UK and international – is not required for Prince Harry and Ms. Markle’s wedding. Her Majesty’s Government was consulted on this decision, which was taken by The Royal Household.
Harry is not, of course, a direct heir to the throne. Still, this is a departure from recent royal weddings. At Prince William and Catherine Middleton’s wedding, then-prime minister David Cameron attended, as well as a slew of other political figures and foreign royalty. At the wedding of Harry’s parents, Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, US first lady Nancy Reagan was among the dignitaries in attendance (though president Ronald Reagan sent his regrets because he was attending an economic summit).
The excitement swirling around a royal wedding usually gets more dramatic when news seeps out about who will get an invite, as non-family invites are usually symbolic and political. Some in the British press are framing the decision to exclude political leaders as a diplomatic way of getting out of inviting Trump to their wedding.
Markle, an American actress and humanitarian, had called Trump “divisive” and “misogynistic“ prior to the couple’s engagement. And Prince Harry has a well-documented friendship with Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama. If the couple invited the Obamas but not the Trumps, it would certainly be seen as a snub.
Trump, May, and anyone who didn’t get an invite still could catch a glimpse of the couple on their wedding day if they’re lucky: In an effort to make it a more publicly inclusive event, Kensington Palace announced today that 2,640 members of the public will be invited to the grounds of Windsor Castle on May 19.