US midterms: After sweeping Republican defeat, Vance eyes disillusioned Trump voters ahead of 2028 elections

Not all's well in the White House. After the Republicans suffered a sweeping defeat in the US midterm polls, Vice President JD Vance is eyeing an alliance with disillusioned voters of Donald Trump ahead of the seminal 2028 elections, Fox News Digital reported, citing sources aware of the matter.

JD Vance is being considered a top GOP presidential candidate in 2028, along with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He took his own messaging into his own hands on Wednesday, breaking away from his boss on foreign policy and America-Israel ties, according to sources. A source told Fox News Digital that there was a White House meeting aimed at aligning administration officials on post-midterm messaging. A second source called it a regular staff meeting.

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Vance's postmortem of the Iran war, why Republicans lost

Seems like Vance dropped hints in his social media post after the Republicans faced defeat in midterms. In a post, the US Vice President said, "The reason we lost is he war," adding that Trump himself said so.

"If you'd like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay. Agree or disagree, that's at least honest," Vance further said.

"But everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there."

Citing a pollster, Vance said that even he was shocked by the results, stating that Trump voters were frustrated and planning to vote for the Democratic Party. According to the pollster, the voters abandoned Republicans due to the ongoing war.

The top 4 demands of the voters were put an end to the war, focus on cost of living/inflation, put America First, and change America's relationship with Israel.

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What do these four tasks hint at? 

According to a Trump administration official, the four tasks are Vance's bid to form the "new right", which is defined broadly as a coalition of Republicans that aligns with the President's initial "America First" movement.

The "America First" movement is a nationalist and non-interventionist political philosophy. In 2024, it focused on staying out of foreign conflicts, making America affordable for Americans, and closing the borders.

Voters believe Trump is too aligned with Tel Aviv on foreign policy matters, sources said. Some rightwing analysts believe that the ongoing war in Iran is intrinsically tied to Israel's influence in the Middle East and Trump's relationship with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

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Is this a separation from Trump? 

An official clarified that Vance's message is not a separation from Trump like former Vice President Mike Pence who denounced Trump after the 2021 Capitol Hill riots.

Instead, Vance is aiming to send a clear message to Republicans who support Trump and disagree with or feel betrayed by his foreign policy. "Vance is our guy," the official said.

Despite his friendship with Pete Hegseth, vice president has expressed his disagreement with the administration's stance on the Iran conflict.

Earlier this year, Trump said that JD Vance was "maybe less enthusiastic" about attacking Iran from the get go.