Vance eyes 2028 reset as Republicans face midterm losses
Vice President JD Vance blamed the Iran war for Republican losses in the US midterm elections, according to Al Jazeera.
Republican leaders are considering a course correction after the party lost control of both the US Senate and the House of Representatives in the midterm elections this week. According to Al Jazeera, the losses included former Republican strongholds such as Texas.
US Vice President JD Vance stated on X that the Iran war was the reason for the defeat. Vance said that former Trump voters switched sides over the war and US ties to Israel, adding that he remains hopeful about the country.
The conflict follows strikes by the US and Israel on Iran on February 28, after which Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz. This led to a global energy crisis, with Brent crude hitting $120 in March and April and recently hovering around $115.
Andrew Payne from the Chatham House think tank told Al Jazeera that anyone seeking the 2028 presidential election will need to distance themselves from unpopular aspects of Donald Trump's record. Payne noted that Vance's public blame of the war may be an attempt to make his difference of opinion clear to voters.
Vance is currently considered a frontrunner for the 2028 Republican nomination. A Tuesday poll from The New York Times placed Vance at 40 per cent in a theoretical primary, followed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Donald Trump Jr, both at 21 per cent.
While Vance has privately urged an end to the conflict, President Trump said this week that the war would only end when he wants it to. An anonymous source told Politico that while Vance may differentiate himself, he cannot completely delink from the Trump administration.
