Trump's glamorous wife set to make convention pitch

Melania Trump -- glamorous, European-born and until now only a minor presence on the campaign trail -- will make her primetime debut Monday on the opening night of the Republican convention, as her husband's number one cheerleader.

Born in Slovenia -- then part of Yugoslavia -- to a fashion-industry mother and a car-salesman father, the somewhat shy 46-year-old will rally tens of thousands of Republican delegates in Cleveland.

Her background and allure make her a potentially potent surrogate for her White House hopeful husband, particularly on sensitive issues like immigration and gender.

Born Melanija Knavs, in the hillside town of Sevnica, she studied design and architecture before leaving for Milan and Paris to launch her modelling career.

That brought her to the United States in 1996, where two years later she met Donald Trump. She later became his third wife.

The Trump campaign hopes her story can bring nuance to his much criticized stance on immigration -- contrasting the call for hardline measures against Latin Americans and Muslims with a more open stance on legal immigration.

"I followed the law the way it's supposed to be," she said earlier this year. "You should not just say, 'Okay, let me just stay here and whatever happens, happens.'"

Critics will no doubt see a racial undertone in the celebration of a successful, beautiful, white European immigrant who speaks at least five languages and oozes wealth.

Melania's Twitter account -- inactive since Trump declared his candidacy -- reflects the privileged lifestyle of a jet-setter traveling between a lavish New York apartment and residences in Florida.

She has tweeted photographs from high-society gatherings and major sporting events, as well as recollections of her red-carpet saunters and charity functions. In each image, Melania appears impeccably dressed.

When Donald and Melania married in January 2005 in Florida, the cost of her Dior dress was estimated at $200,000.

Among the invited celebrities was Hillary Clinton, this year's likely Democratic presidential nominee.

- 'He treats everyone equal' -

Melania could also provide a potent voice to counter claims that Trump is sexist.

He has never minced words about women he does not like -- using the terms "bimbo," "dog," or "fat pig" -- and is polling badly among women voters.

At a rally in Wisconsin last April, Mrs Trump gushed praise of her husband, perhaps offering a preview of Monday's speech.

"I'm very proud of him. He is a hard worker. He's kind. He has a great heart. He's tough. He's smart."

She added: "He's a great communicator. He's a great negotiator. He's telling the truth. He's a great leader. He's fair."

"As you may know by now, when you attack him, he will punch back ten times harder," she said. "No matter who you are, a man, or a woman, he treats everyone equal."

- Reluctant campaigner -

Initially, Melania did not seem to be entirely on board with the idea of her husband launching a White House bid.

Trump once admitted Melania would have been content as the wife of a billionaire businessman and reality TV star.

"She said, 'We have such a great life. Why do you want to do this?'" Trump told The Washington Post.

She has been largely absent from her husband's presidential campaign, only rarely speaking on the stump.

But she unwittingly found herself in the eye of the primary storm when an anti-Trump political group unveiled a questionable ad on Facebook that used a photo of her lying naked and handcuffed to a briefcase.

The photograph, taken aboard Trump's custom-fitted private jet, was part of a shoot for the magazine GQ in 2000, before the couple married.

The ad, released just before votes in Arizona and Utah, featured the photo with the words: "Meet Melania Trump. Your next first lady. Or, you could support Ted Cruz on Tuesday."

Trump accused Cruz, a senator from Texas, of being behind the provocation and responded by retweeting a photo montage showing an image of Melania next to an unflattering picture of Ted Cruz's wife Heidi, along with the phrase: "The images are worth a thousand words."

The Trump campaign will hope that Melania's speech Monday will be worth thousands of votes.