President Donald Trump indicated that Vice President JD Vance is probably the heir to his Make America Great Again movement. However, he also mentioned that there are other potential candidates and that it is too soon to finalise a name.
Trump was asked about Secretary of State Marco Rubio‘s comments to Fox News, in which he said that Vance “would be a great nominee if he decides he wants to do that,” a Bloomberg report quoted him during a White House event on Tuesday.
“I think most likely — in all fairness, he’s the vice president,” Trump said when questioned about whether Vance was the heir-apparent to his movement. “I think Marco is also somebody that maybe would get together with JD in some form.”
“I also think we have incredible people, some of the people on the stage right here,” Trump added. “So it’s too early, obviously, to talk about it, but certainly he’s doing a great job, and he would be probably favoured at this point.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump told CNBC in an interview that he would “probably not” run for a third term. Despite this, he continues to maintain a strong influence over the Republican Party during his second term. Although he has previously suggested Vance and Rubio, his former critics, now loyal supporters, as potential successors, he has yet to endorse a successor for the 2028 campaign.
The 79-year-old US President and his allies have hinted at exploring a third term, although the Constitution prohibits it.
In February, just weeks after regaining power, Trump said “no” when asked if he considered Vance his successor, stating it was too soon to decide.
Vance, a former US senator from Ohio, supported Trump’s form of economic populism and was chosen as his running mate in 2024. Trump had a disagreement with his previous vice president, Mike Pence, who declined to obstruct the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 election win.
