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Vice President JD Vance has long been viewed as President Donald Trump’s heir apparent, but a string of developments following Republicans’ bruising midterm losses is raising new questions about his potential path to the White House in 2028.
Vance is facing criticism from some Republicans over his explanation for the party’s election defeats, particularly his decision to blame the Iran war. Meanwhile, other prominent Republicans are beginning to draw support for potential 2028 bids, complicating the political picture for the vice president.
The political debate follows a devastating election for Republicans, who lost their majorities in both chambers of Congress beginning next year, with at least 30 GOP House members losing their races. The losses have prompted competing explanations from within the party over what went wrong and what Republicans should do differently.
Some of Vance’s allies have reportedly urged him to consider sitting out the 2028 race following the midterm losses, The Wall Street Journal reported Nov. 7. However, others close to the vice president still expect him to run, The Washington Post reported Friday, underscoring the uncertainty surrounding his political future.
TRUMP SAYS HE DOESN’T DISAGREE WITH VANCE THAT IRAN WAR FUELED GOP LOSSES
A Vance ally pushed back on suggestions that the midterm losses have diminished his 2028 prospects, saying the vice president will decide whether to run on his own timeline.
The ally also argued that Vance would be better served by winning a competitive Republican primary than being handed the nomination, expressing confidence in his ability to prevail if he runs.
In a Nov. 4 post on X, Vance identified several concerns among voters who abandoned Republicans, including inflation, America First priorities and the U.S. relationship with Israel, but singled out the Iran war as the main reason for the party’s defeats.
“The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night,” Vance wrote, adding that Republicans needed to acknowledge the political cost of the conflict as they consider where to go next.
The post drew sharp criticism from Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., who told Fox’ LiveNOW in a Nov. 8 interview that he would not support Vance in a potential 2028 presidential primary.
PENCE DELIVERS SCATHING REBUKE OF VANCE’S IRAN WAR ASSESSMENT, BLAMES TRUMP POLICIES FOR GOP LOSSES
“I definitively will not be supporting the vice president in that nominating contest,” Fine said, comparing Vance’s remarks to rhetoric from “1932 Germany.”
Fine, who is Jewish, accused Vance of blaming Jewish people for the Republican losses, pointing to his criticism of the war and the pollster’s finding that some voters wanted a change in America’s relationship with Israel.
Vance did not explicitly blame Jewish people in his post, and his office previously declined to respond to Fine’s characterization.
VANCE COURTING DISGRUNTLED TRUMP VOTERS TO FORM ‘NEW RIGHT’ ALLIANCE AFTER REPUBLICAN BLOODBATH, SOURCES SAY
Some Republicans are already expressing support for possible alternatives to Vance. Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., told Fox News Digital after the midterms that he was “all in” for Secretary of State Marco Rubio, describing him as a potential unifying figure for Republicans following their election losses.
Rubio is among several prominent Republicans whose names have surfaced as possible 2028 presidential contenders, along with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.
Former Vice President Mike Pence also disputed Vance’s explanation for Republicans’ midterm losses, arguing in an exclusive Fox News Digital interview Thursday that voters had grown frustrated not because Trump launched the Iran war, but because his administration failed to finish it.
“There’s no question that the war in Iran became a frustration for millions of Americans, but it wasn’t because President Trump started the war or took on Iran. It’s because we stopped short and didn’t finish it,” Pence said. “As Americans saw the politics of appeasement that the administration embraced, one negotiation after another, I think people became … frustrated with the lack of progress, frustrated with the price of fuel at the pump.”
Trump, meanwhile, has publicly defended Vance’s assessment of the midterms, rejecting suggestions that the remarks damaged their relationship.
“No, not at all,” Trump told reporters Sunday when asked whether Vance’s comments had strained their relationship, according to The Hill.
But the president also stood by his decision to launch the war, arguing that he would make the same choice again despite the political fallout.
Donald Trump Jr. also backed Vance’s assessment, writing “Every word of this is [100 emojis]” in response to his Nov. 4 post on X.
On Thursday, Trump directed Vance to focus his attention on alleged corruption and crime in Democratic-led cities and states rather than pursuing negotiations with Iran, declaring that the United States no longer needed a deal with Tehran.
Vance had played a central role in diplomatic efforts involving Iran, including negotiations over a short-lived truce earlier this year.
“The Blue States, such as Minnesota, California, Illinois, and many more, are all poorly run, corrupt disasters,” Trump wrote in the post. “Billions of Dollars is being stolen each and every month. Our Budget could be quickly BALANCED with the correction of this large scale criminal activity. CORRUPTION is in the Democrat Leadership’s blood!”
“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed. We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!” the president continued.
VANCE ‘PRIVATELY’ BLASTS NETANYAHU AS IRAN WAR DIVIDES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION AND 2028 AMBITIONS LOOM
Trump has previously signaled support for Vance as his potential successor, telling donors during an Oval Office meeting over the summer that Republicans needed to elect the vice president in 2028, Fox News Digital reported at the time.
But Trump has stopped short of publicly endorsing Vance, and the president has continued to leave open the possibility of other Republicans entering the race.
When asked on Nov. 4 whether he had talked about a prospective 2028 White House run with Vance, Trump replied that the two discuss “a lot of things,” Axios reported. Trump added: “Maybe he [Vance] won’t run. I don’t know who’s going to run.”
Still, Vance told Mark Halperin in an October interview that he believes Trump would back him if he jumps into the presidential race, ABC 7 reported.
“I really have not made up my mind about what to do in 2028. I just haven’t focused on it. We, you, and I have talked about that. Look, I think if I run, the president will endorse me,” Vance said during the interview.
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Fox News Digital’s Ashley DiMella and Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this story.
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