President Trump said on Tuesday that Vice President JD Vance was “most likely” to succeed him as the leader of the MAGA movement, in what appeared to be his strongest public backing for Mr. Vance’s political future.
Though Mr. Trump has previously mused about running for a third presidential term in 2028, the Constitution does not allow it, and speculation has grown about who he would support as his eventual successor.
At an event in the South Court Auditorium of the White House on Tuesday, Mr. Trump was asked by a reporter whether he agreed that the heir apparent to the MAGA movement was Mr. Vance.
“Well, I think most likely, in all fairness. He’s the vice president,” Mr. Trump said. He added that it was “too early obviously to talk about it,” but that Mr. Vance was “doing a great job and he would be probably favorite at this point.”
Mr. Trump also suggested that “Marco,” an apparent reference to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, was “also somebody that maybe would get together with JD” on a Republican ticket.
The president’s comments suggest a shift in his thinking over time. In May, he floated both Mr. Vance and Mr. Rubio as possible successors.
Earlier, in February, the president was asked in an interview with Fox News whether he saw Mr. Vance as his successor and the Republican nominee in 2028. “No, but he’s very capable,” Mr. Trump said then, adding that it was too early in his term for such speculation.
Enjoli Liston is a Times editor based in London who works on live coverage of major breaking news.
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