US President Donald Trump on Monday publicly floated Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as a potential Republican “dream team” for the 2028 presidential election, while conducting an impromptu poll among guests during a White House dinner event.
Speaking at a dinner for law enforcement leaders in the Rose Garden during National Police Week, Trump asked attendees whom they preferred as the future face of the Republican Party.
“Is it gonna be JD? Is it gonna be someone else? I don’t know,” Trump said before turning to the crowd with questions including, “Who likes JD Vance?” and “Who likes Marco Rubio?”
After applause for both leaders, Trump remarked, “Sounds like a good ticket.”
“JD, this is a perfect — that was a perfect ticket. By the way, I do believe that’s a dream team, but these are minor details,” he said. “That does not mean you have my endorsement under any circumstance. But you know... I think it sounds like presidential candidate and vice presidential candidate.”
The president’s remarks added fresh fuel to speculation over who could lead the Republican ticket after Trump, who remains the dominant figure in the party despite the 2028 election being more than two years away.
Trump is known to frequently raise the Vance-versus-Rubio question among close allies and guests at his Mar-a-Lago club as a way of gauging political sentiment, according to multiple reports.
Vance, a first-term senator from Ohio before becoming Trump’s running mate in the 2024 election, is widely viewed as a frontrunner to carry forward Trump’s political legacy. His rise from a former Trump critic to vice president has mirrored the Republican Party’s broader shift toward Trump over the past decade.
Recently, Vance has taken on a larger public and foreign policy role, including participating in discussions involving Iran and campaigning across the Midwest ahead of the midterm elections.
Addressing young conservatives at a Turning Point USA event in April, Vance said: “I’m not saying you have to agree with me on every issue. What I am saying is don’t get disengaged because you disagree with the administration on one topic.”
Rubio, a former Florida senator and Trump rival in the 2016 Republican presidential primary, joined the administration as secretary of state in 2025. Over the past year, he has emerged as one of the administration’s most visible officials, serving simultaneously in multiple high-profile roles, including White House national security adviser.
Trump has repeatedly praised Rubio’s performance in office. In March, he said: “Marco Rubio is doing a great job. I think he’s going to go down as the greatest secretary of State in history. He’s been successful no matter where he’s been.”
Despite ongoing speculation over 2028, both Vance and Rubio have publicly downplayed presidential ambitions and said they remain focused on their current responsibilities in the administration.
Rubio, however, has indicated he would support Vance if the vice president enters the race. “If JD Vance runs for president, he’s going to be our nominee, and I’ll be one of the first people to support him,” Rubio said in an interview with Vanity Fair last year.
Political strategists say Trump’s public comparisons are consistent with his style of encouraging competition within his political orbit while gauging support among party loyalists.
“It’s very Trump to constantly do a pulse check on how folks feel about Marco versus Vance. That is very much in the president’s DNA, to get a sense of where donors are and politicos and even folks in the media,” GOP strategist Brian Seitchik said.
“The president is always evaluating and comparing, and he’s well aware also that, by nature, those types of questions generate competition, which anyone who’s watched ‘The Apprentice’ knows he values,” he added.
