This cabinet member is the clear favorite to succeed Donald Trump as Republican candidate in U.S elections 2028

A new poll by J.L. Partners shows JD Vance is the favorite to become the Republican candidate in the 2028 U.S. elections. 46% of Republicans who were asked in May said they would support Vice President JD Vance in the primaries, according to the reports, by the New York Post.

Vance is the only one with double-digit support in the poll. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis came second with 8%. Vivek Ramaswamy, a candidate from Ohio, got 7%. Marco Rubio and Senator Ted Cruz from Texas each got 6%. Nikki Haley, ex-Governor of South Carolina, got 5%. The poll did not include Donald Trump, who will be term-limited in January 2029, according to a New York Post report.

Even though he can’t run again legally, Trump and his team have hinted he might try to run for a third time, which would be against the Constitution.


On the Democratic side, Kamala Harris is the top pick with 30% support. Pete Buttigieg came second with 8%. Josh Shapiro and Gavin Newsom both got 7%.

JD Vance is 40 years old, who on earlier occasions let his not so flattering opinions of Trump known. In 2016, he even called Trump “America’s Hitler.” Nine years and a full 360 degree turn later, he is fully supporting Trump and the MAGA movement, and has turned out to be one of his most loyal aides. Trump appointed him as his Vice President, only 2 years after JD Vance was elected for the first time.

DeSantis, 46, lost Trump’s support in 2023 after running against him. He is liked by Republicans who don’t want the MAGA movement to go on.

Rubio, 53, ran against Trump in 2016, and Trump mocked him by calling him “Little Marco”, but now, they are allies. Rubio is part of the Trump administration and was even on Trump’s VP shortlist last year. He is MAGA, but not as loud as Trump, Vance, or DeSantis.

In March, Trump said the MAGA movement has a strong future. He mentioned that Vance and Rubio are some of his favorite choices for the future. Trump said, “You look at Marco, you look at JD Vance, who’s fantastic, according to the reports. I could name 10, 15, 20 people. We have a tremendous party”, according to the report by NBC's Meet the Press.

FAQs

Q1. Who’s winning in the Republican race for 2028?
Right now, most Republican voters are picking JD Vance as their top choice.

Q2. Can Trump run for president again in 2028?
Nope, the rules say a person can only be president two times.