Advisers say the remark doesn’t mean the president has settled on a preferred candidate in 2028 as he plays up a contest between JD Vance and Marco Rubio.
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President Donald Trump recently told donors in private that he wants to see his vice president win the 2028 presidential election — a sign that he is open to publicly backing JD Vance, even as some advisers caution that Trump has yet to settle firmly on a successor.
“At the end of the day, we need to elect JD,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with donors roughly two weeks ago, according to two people with knowledge of the comments who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter.
The private remark contrasts with Trump’s rhetoric over the past year, publicly egging on a contest for his favor between Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He has openly mused that the two would make a good joint ticket and has repeatedly declined to specify who he would prefer to see at the top.
Even as Trump buoyed his vice president to donors in the Oval Office, though, he was still peppering people around him with questions about Vance versus Rubio. One White House official said the president quizzed staff about the two men on a Marine One ride late last month.
An adviser to the president with direct knowledge of Trump’s comment to the donors said that Trump has privately resolved that Vance will be the heir to the GOP, but that it is “too early” to determine when Vance will announce his candidacy or when Trump will publicly endorse him.
Six other Trumpworld advisers and allies, however, cautioned that they aren’t convinced the president has settled on Vance, noting that Trump tells different things to different people and could still change his mind about an endorsement for 2028. Trump aides widely agree that the president will delay endorsing to avoid appearing to be a lame duck.
“Anyone assuming it’s a lock is just getting way ahead of themselves, or just doesn’t know the president very well,” said the official with knowledge of Trump’s recent Vance-Rubio poll on Marine One.
Vance has not confirmed his plans. People who have spoken to him about the matter told The Washington Post earlier this year that he had not yet made a decision. One person close to Vance said he would delay a call until after the birth of his fourth child, who arrived July 19.
Vance told CBS in June that he would discuss the matter with his wife after the midterms but said he had “no doubt that the president of the United States is going to be very supportive” of whatever decision he makes. He has repeatedly said that he is focused on his current job and that he is good friends with Rubio.
But the prospect of a succession fight has already generated some of the tensions of a heated primary, with donors, activists and other party figures passionately speaking out for or against Vance.
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Much depends on the midterms. A poor showing for Republicans could embolden challengers to run against Trump’s choice and be more critical of his administration. Vance or Rubio could be vulnerable to intraparty attacks that Republicans would not levy against Trump himself — a dynamic already on display online as right-wing influencers target the vice president over the Iran war.
Trump enjoys game-show-style drama, and advisers said he is loath to yield the spotlight to his preferred successor. The president has had fun toying with Vance and Rubio — as well as with the press — by hyping up the competition for his blessing, much as he did when deciding on his running mate between the same two men in 2024.
Trump has also delighted in floating himself for a third presidential term, regularly sharing “Trump 2028″ graphics on social media and joking about the prospect at rallies, even as those close to him confirm he is not serious about it.
During the 2024 running-mate contest and now, Rubio had the backing of most pre-Trump GOP donors. Vance is more aligned with the younger MAGA coalition that returned Trump to power in 2024 but is now at risk of fraying. He has also spent his vice presidency developing relationships with party benefactors to fundraise for the GOP.
“Vance has done a lot of political work in the last year and a half,” said the Trump adviser with knowledge of his recent comment to donors.
Lately Vance impressed Trump by negotiating a June ceasefire deal with Iran, leading a task force to crack down on fraud in federal benefits and parrying a range of media interviews for his book tour in June, the adviser said. Even though the ceasefire deal collapsed in July, Vance advisers believed that his role in the talks was still a political win: The agreement he negotiated was popular, whereas voters widely disapprove of Trump’s handling of the war.
Rubio, by contrast, has served in multiple key administration roles, none of which lend themselves to politics. Legally and logistically, a secretary of state — or a national security adviser, a role Rubio also occupies — would not be able to run for president while serving.
Rubio recoils at any discussion of 2028 and has recently reduced his media availability to avoid facing more questions about it that would inevitably stir further chatter, a person close to him said. But Rubio’s team briefly increased speculation about his ambitions earlier this year, when they produced a widely shared video of him giving a campaign-style monologue while holding a press briefing. In some internal conversations, the person said, Rubio has alluded to his remaining time in office, implying he intends to serve out the term.
He does not have a campaign-in-waiting or political operation ready to assemble.
The Trump adviser said that Trump still would like to see Rubio on a joint ticket with Vance — and the president regularly praises Rubio — but that it is unclear whether Rubio would actually want the role of Vance’s running mate.
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A Rubio spokesman declined to comment.
