President Donald Trump said Wednesday that a presidential ticket pairing Vice President JD Vance with Secretary of State Marco Rubio would be a tough one for opponents to defeat in the 2028 election.
Speaking on Miranda Devine's podcast, which aired Wednesday, Trump offered a personal assessment of how the two officials interact. "I would think that JD and Marco as a team would be very hard to beat," he said. "It’s interesting, human thing, the human equation. So I watch them together, they get along great," he added.
Both Vance and Rubio are widely regarded as potential entrants into the 2028 Republican nominating contest. Rubio, in particular, has attracted favorable reaction from Republicans and some Democrats after a recent White House briefing in which he mixed jokes with a 1990s hip-hop reference to characterize Iran's negotiating position.
Despite frequent speculation about future succession plans, Trump has continued to discuss possible successors while Vance and Rubio have publicly downplayed their own 2028 ambitions. Both men have recently been present at White House briefings, where they answered questions related to the Trump administration, including inquiries about the Iran war.
No candidate has formally declared a campaign for the November 2028 election.
The comments from Trump came in the context of a recorded interview and focused on personal chemistry as a political asset, rather than on specific policy proposals or campaign plans. The discussion reiterated how party figures and administration officials remain part of ongoing conversations about leadership and future Republican prospects.
At this stage, while speculation about running mates and rival tickets persists, the factual record remains limited to public statements from the president and observable appearances by senior administration officials. Neither Vance nor Rubio has launched a formal campaign for the 2028 race.