Vice President-elect JD Vance is on a trajectory to become the heir apparent to the America First activity and the Republican Party’s potent Do center then that President-elect Trump is term-limited and constitutionally unqualified to run for president again in 2028. It was a point driven home by Donald Trump Jr., the former and future president’s eldest son and powerful ally of the vice president-elect. ” We are getting eight years of JD Vance and four more years of Trump”! Trump Jr. said on the campaign trail in Ohio a few weeks ahead of November’s election. Numerous Republican politicians, strategists, and experts concur that Vance, who was just elected to the Ohio Senate two years ago, will likely be the clear choice in the Republican presidential nomination race. The vice president will be in the catbird seat. No controversies surround it, according to Dave Carney, a seasoned Republican consultant, to Fox News Digital. Vance is the frontrunner, according to Carney, a veteran of numerous Republican presidential campaigns over the past four decades. Kochel, a long-time GOP strategist with extensive experience, told Fox News that Vance is the frontrunner due to” the size and the scope of last week’s victory and the implied passing of the torch from Donald Trump.” There won’t be a lack of viewers for it. However, the majority of people who observe it are observing the relative strength of the movement and the Trump victory,” Kochel said. And with Trump’s support in a party firmly in the president-elect’s grip, the 40-year-old Vance will be extremely hard to knock off. However, Kochel noted that “nobody will completely defer to JD Vance. There will be a contest. There is always someone who can challenge him, according to Carney, who noted that” there may be other people who want to be president, but it will be a very difficult path for the Trump/Vance administration,” regardless of whether it will be a good four or a rough four. Top Trump ally Michael Whatley, the head of the Republican National Committee, stated in a recent Fox News Digital interview that he is “very excited about the bench that we have in the Republican Party right now.” He also emphasized that regardless of Vance’s likely frontrunner status as the 2028 election draws closer, the RNC will continue to hold its traditional role of remaining neutral in an open and contested presidential primary. Some of the bench members who might have national aspirations and goals in 2028 or beyond are listed below. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the conservative governor of Florida, was eying re-election in 2022 with great success, but a flop in the 2024 presidential primary and a bitter fight with Trump slammed Florida governor. Ron DeSantis down in stature. However, the term-limited 46-year-old governor, who has two years left in office steering Florida, proved over the past few years his fundraising prowess and retains plenty of supporters across the country. DeSantis was also able, to a degree, to repair relations with Trump, helped raise money for the GOP ticket during the general election, and earned a prime time speaking slot at July’s convention. DeSantis is likely to have his eyes on another White House run if his nominee Pete Hegseth, who sources claim Trump has considered as a plan B for defense secretary, gets into trouble. Georgia Gov. One of the few Republicans in the country who can claim that Brian Kemp, a well-known conservative governor, survived and thrived in the face of Trump’s wrath. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who is term-limited, has two more years in office and enjoys high ratings in a crucial battleground state. As his national profile grows, anticipate seeing the 61-year-old Kemp on the campaign trail across the country for other Republicans in 2026. Virginia Gov. Gov. YoungkinWith his 2021 gubernatorial victory, the first by a Republican in Virginia in a dozen years, Gov. Youngkin. Glenn Youngkin immediately rose to prominence as a rising star in the GOP. In Virginia, governors are limited to one four-year term, which means Youngkin has one year left in office. The 58-year-old governor, who hails from the Republican Party’s business wing but has been able to thrive in a MAGA-dominated party, likely harbors national ambitions. After his second term as governor is over, a Cabinet position might be created in the second Trump administration. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was the runner-up to Trump in the blockbuster 2016 Republican presidential battle. The contentious conservative firebrand lost out on challenging Trump once more in 2024 as he attempted what was thought to be another challenging re-election campaign, only to lose. However, the 53-year-old senator ended up winning a third six-year term in the Senate by nearly nine points. Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas was thought to be one of the more extensive list of potential Trump running mates. He served in combat in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars before emerging as a rising star in Republican politics. The now-47-year-old Sen. Tom Cotton seriously mulled a 2024 White House run of his own before deciding against it in late 2022, putting his young family ahead of political ambitions. However, he did not rule out a future presidential bid. Cotton is currently running for the top three leadership positions in the incoming Senate Republican majority, which would be the GOP conference chair. Sen. Josh Hawley of MissouriThe 44-year-old Sen. Josh Hawley, along with Cotton, is another rising conservative star in the Senate. Additionally, Hawley is a vocal supporter of Donald Trump’s” America First” agenda and is portrayed as having national aspirations. Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, who served as U.N. ambassador in Trump’s first term, was the first GOP challenger to face the former president in the 2024 nomination race. Former governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley outlasted the rest of the field, winning the election for president in March, ending her campaign for the presidency. While the 52-year-old Haley ended up backing Trump in the general election, her earlier clashes with the now president-elect during the primaries left their mark. Even though she addressed the GOP establishment at the convention, Trump’s party is unsure about her political future. Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee SandersThe first-term conservative governor of Arkansas is a well-known figure in MAGA world, thanks to her tenure as Trump’s longest-serving White House press secretary during his first administration. The 42-year-old Sanders, the daughter of former Arkansas governor and former two-time presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, has also grabbed national attention for delivering the GOP’s response to President Biden’s 2023 State of the Union address. Vivek Ramaswamy, a former presidential candidate, was one of the biggest surprises in the GOP nomination race. He is a multimillionaire biotech entrepreneur, anti-woke rebel, and first-time candidate. The now 39-year-old Vivek Ramaswamy, who touted during his campaign that he and Trump were the only two” America First candidates” in the large field of contenders, eventually dropped out of the race and became a major backer and surrogate for the former president. The new presidential advisory commission, which will aim to drastically reduce the federal budget, is now led by billionaire Trump supporter Elon Musk and his pal Elon Musk. Sen. Marco Rubio of South Carolina, who unsuccessfully ran for the 2024 nomination but is still very popular, and Sen. Rick Scott of Florida and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who both pondered but decided against presidential runs this past cycle, are among the candidates to keep your eyes on. Also, not to be ignored – top Trump supporters Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida and Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, whom Trump picked to serve as U. S. ambassador to the U. N., and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who was named to head the Department of Homeland SecurityThen there is Donald Trump Jr., the president-elect’s eldest son and MAGA warrior. Given that the younger Trump is very close to Vance, it is likely that he won’t be able to apply for the White House in the coming year. At our Fox News Digital election hub, you can find the most recent information on the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews, and more. New Hampshire-based Paul Steinhauser is a political reporter.