[6] Trone was born in Maryland and raised on a 200-acre (81 ha) farm in East Berlin, Pennsylvania,[7][8] where his father Thomas ran a chicken and hog operation.

[9] They familiarized themselves with regulators and industry leaders, and began changing laws that restrict wholesalers from offering retailers discounts in exchange for large volume purchases, among others, in their attempt to promote beverage consumption.

[30] In July 2023, The American Prospect reported that Total Wine & More sought to impede on a Federal Trade Commission investigation into alleged violations of the Robinson–Patman Act, which prohibits anti-competitive price discrimination, in alcohol markets.

[19][39] During these legal proceedings, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) broke the law by providing records of his consulting firm to government officials, prompting Trone to sue the agency in federal court.

[42][43] In 2016, the couple pledged $5 million to establish the Trone Family Public Policy Initiative Fund at their alma mater, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

[15][17] In mid-2017, the Trones donated $2.5 million to Bethesda, Maryland's Suburban Hospital to support mental and behavioral health services and make improvements to the Old Georgetown Road campus.

[44][45][46] The David and June Trone Family Foundation contributed $100,000 to the Catholic Legal Immigration Network in 2017 to support locals affected by Trump's travel ban, which the couple called "outrageously egregious".

[27] The Washington Post reported that Trone contributed more than $90,000 to Democratic state officials during the same period, and said the donations made to Republicans were to support "legislation or regulatory changes favorable to his company".

"[56] On August 2, 2017, Trone announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for Maryland's 6th district, an open seat being vacated by John Delaney, who chose not to seek reelection and retire from Congress to focus on his 2020 presidential campaign.

His filing was accompanied by a press release expressing his support for education, environmental protections, health care, Social Security, and women's rights.

[65][66] Trone also made combating the opioid epidemic a central focus of his platform,[67][68] releasing an action plan and hosting a series of town hall meetings to address the crisis.

[106] During the campaign, Trone presented himself as a progressive Democrat, citing his philanthropic activities and hiring practices at Total Wine & More, and highlighted a platform focused on drug costs, systemic racism, and defending abortion rights.

[115] However, Trone's candidacy suffered from various political gaffes he had made along the campaign trail in the final weeks of the election,[116][117][118] including his accidental use of a racial slur during a congressional hearing.

[124] In December 2024, Trone told Maryland Matters that he would not return to Total Wine & More after leaving Congress, instead opting to work more on his charitable foundation in support of people struggling with addiction or mental health issues.

[133] In 2023, Trone founded the Second Chance Task Force in an effort to promote policies that improve reentry outcomes and reduce employment barriers for returning citizens, a disproportionate number of whom are people of color.

[134] In October 2023, Trone signed onto a letter written by Senator Elizabeth Warren calling on the Biden administration to crack down on the use of cryptocurrency in terrorist financing.

[137] In May 2020, Trone signed a letter to DeVos criticizing her decision not to extend emergency federal aid grants provided by the CARES Act to undocumented students.

[138] During his 2024 U.S. Senate campaign, he supported providing students with free community college and starting preschool education in classroom settings for three year olds.

[143] In November 2018, the day following his election win, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Benisek v. Lamone struck down Maryland's redistricting plan as unconstitutionally gerrymandered.

[157] In January 2023, Trone sent a letter to U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken calling on him to refuse negotiations with China on other topics until the country promised to do more to curb the fentanyl crisis.

[164] Trone is a "minyan" donor to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which requires a minimum annual gift of $100,000 and is the highest membership level in the group.

[164] In December 2018, before being sworn into office, he traveled with a bipartisan group of freshmen House members to Israel, during which he met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, opposition leader Tzipi Livni, and Palestine Liberation Organization lead negotiator Saeb Erekat.

[171] In October 2023, amid the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, Trone expressed support for Israel and predicted that the country would "be forced to enter and take control of Gaza for the foreseeable future" to counter terrorism and retrieve hostages.

The plan called for allowing the government to negotiate lower prices for overdose medication, increasing funding for the National Institutes of Health, and expanding prevention programs in schools.

[189] At the beginning of the 2020 legislative session, Trone introduced the Preventing Mental Health and Substance Use Crises During Emergencies Act,[190] which was signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2021.

[195] During his 2024 U.S. Senate campaign, Trone supported modernizing immigration courts and putting American embassies and consulates in each country to streamline the process for applying for citizenship.

[197] In July 2019, Trone condemned President Donald Trump's comments toward members of The Squad to "go back" to the "places from which they came", tweeting that the remarks were "racist and just plain wrong".

[205] During his 2024 U.S. Senate campaign, Trone expressed support for reparations in response to "nationwide attacks against diversity, equity, and inclusion", but did not specifically outline any plan to pay African Americans directly.

[210] In 2012, Kids Enjoy Exercise Now (KEEN) Greater DC gave Trone the Distinguished Service Award for his contributions to the organization, which provides recreational programs for children with developmental and physical disabilities.

[214][215] In 2017, Trone received Furman University's Carl F. Kohrt Distinguished Alumni Award, which is presented "to an alumnus in recognition of significant professional or personal accomplishments and in gratitude for continued loyalty".