Exclusive / Republicans worry that Trump’s successor can’t come from his White House - Semafor

Republicans’ stunning midterm defeat is forcing them to confront a question that will shape their 2028 primary: Can their next standard-bearer come from inside the Trump administration?

Vice President JD Vance remains the most prominent potential successor to President Donald Trump, but his blunt X post pinning the party’s Tuesday collapse on the Iran war showed he’s aware that it’s a political liability for all Republicans heading into 2028. And concerns about Vance’s viability are brewing in some corners of the GOP.

“The biggest loser Tuesday night, heading into 2028, was JD Vance,” one Republican strategist argued. “2028 shifted from a conversation about who could carry the torch of Trumpism, to who can rebuild the movement from shambles.”

Vance isn’t the only prospective candidate tied to Trump with new problems after the midterms. While former Speaker Newt Gingrich suggested that Tuesday night might have opened a 2028 lane for Secretary of State Marco Rubio — who’s indicated that he has no plans to run — anyone in Trump’s circle could face similar headwinds.

That includes administration officials who are occasionally whispered about as harboring presidential ambitions, like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Semafor spoke with more than a half-dozen Republicans, inside and close to the administration, who are starting to doubt that voters will embrace Trump’s chosen successor.

“It’s an open race, no question about it,” one person close to the White House said of the looming 2028 debate.

Others in the party are focused on an even touchier topic: Are Republicans doomed for 2028, particularly if the war drags on and voters continue feeling the economic effects?

“There are a lot of Republicans who desperately do not want Donald Trump to be the conversation in 2028. But they’re living in a fantasy world — and the reality is, Donald Trump will always be a big part of the Republican conversation,” said a second person close to the White House. “The actual question is: Can any Republican win?”

Democrats’ huge margin of victory in Tuesday’s popular vote for the House, estimated at 13 points, stemmed in large part from fury over Trump’s handling of the economy. Exit polls showed nearly nine out of 10 voters considered the cost of living as a big factor in their vote, while the majority of voters expressed dissatisfaction with the direction of the country.

As one Trump ally put it, the night was a “disaster” for the GOP.

That’s creating opportunities for Republicans who have kept separate political identities during Trump’s second term. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who lost to Trump in the 2024 primary, acknowledged that the midterms were a “rebuke” of the president. He also amplified Florida’s GOP successes, a rare bright spot for the party on Tuesday.

Some Republicans who were critical of DeSantis during his 2024 run suggested to Semafor this week that they and other doubters would be quieter in 2028 if he chose to run.

Others are more skeptical that Trump defenders (and Trump himself) could resist the temptation to attack DeSantis, particularly if he campaigns with more direct criticism of the president.

Walking a more middle road when it comes to anti-Trump sentiment is Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who has long previewed a potential run. Cruz described the midterm results as “a Watergate-level repudiation,” blaming Trump’s tariffs and the dragging war — both of which he voted to affirm — as well as a disconnect between extreme wealth and everyday Americans.

The vice president’s social media postmortem showcased his balancing act: supporting Trump while looking toward his own political future.

“The reason we lost is the war,” Vance wrote on X. “The president himself said so last night.”

Vance’s allies argue that, if he decides to run, he might be the only candidate close enough to Trump to break from the president without paying harsh consequences. One of those allies described it as creating space to be “his own man without criticizing or alienating the president.”

Trump seemed unbothered by the vice president’s assessment of the midterms, telling reporters “it’s largely true” while standing by his decision to go to war.

Yet Vance has declined to clearly oppose the conflict since it began; his views have emerged in subtle gestures, like taking the lead on negotiations with Tehran. As Gingrich put it, “a good bit of the luster has come off the bloom” for Vance 2028, thanks to the “go-slow strategy blowing up in Iran.”

Trump is in no rush to focus on 2028, or issue any sort of endorsement. Asked about the topic earlier this week, he told reporters that he speaks with Vance “about a lot of things” and emphasized that anyone could ultimately jump into the race.

“You don’t know who’s talking about running,” Trump said. “You’re going to have people running … maybe a lot of people running. Maybe nobody’s going to run. Maybe [Vance] won’t run. I don’t know who’s going to run.”

Electoral catastrophes, like the ones Republicans just experienced, are bound to prompt panic and hand-wringing about the future. But the midterms have surfaced a question that I hear a lot: Can anyone successfully lead this party for the years after Trump leaves the stage?

The GOP’s 2028 hopefuls are damned if they do, damned if they don’t. Running as an anti-Trump figure will carry risks; running on loyalty to him will pose separate problems.

The biggest unknown is Trump himself. If he can find a way to wind down the war and refocus on earning back Americans’ trust over the next two years, he could leave his successor with a clearer path.