Vice President JD Vance has taken over as Republican National Committee (RNC) finance committee chair. This is a new role that says GOP strategists and critics are bolstering their position as a clear frontrunner representing the party as a candidate in the 2028 presidential election.

In his new role, Vance (the first sitting vice president to take on the RNC Campaign Finance Chair duties) will become one of the top fundraisers in the country for the party, playing a pivotal role in overseeing the course from mid-2026 onwards. The position gives Vance access to major GOP donors from across the country and the ability to build relationships with them, cementing their position as the obvious leader in GOP picks against potential opponents who don’t have the same opportunity in 2028, GOP strategists and Pundits told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

“This is a recognition of the effectiveness of JD Vance moving forward with Trump’s message,” Ohio GOP strategist Mark Warner told DCNF. “If the person is not a skilled communicator to activate the base, you don’t put out your main fundraiser. So this is an approval of his skill set and his ability to do a lot. (Related: “The Bunch of Losers”: Dems’ Emerging 2028 Fields may not work for liberals)

Obviously, there’s still plenty of time from the beginning of the 2028 primary season, but the 2028 candidate on the other side of the aisle is already beginning to seriously test the water as part of a very early “invisible primary” process. But the only thing that can knock Vance out of his pole position is either a serious slip-up on his side, or, in Warner’s view, the sudden loss of support from the Trump brand among GOP-based voters.

To this day, Vance has loved himself as a vice president. Among other flashy moments and speeches, Vance disciplined the European elite to censor the average citizen, confronted Ukrainian President Vownai’s President Zelenskyy about his lack of gratitude at an oval office meeting, offering a powerful speech on topics ranging from the pro-life movement to the artificial intelligence race. Sparring He helped with the choice of Trump Cabinets like the director of national intelligence at the finish line in the Senate confirmation process.

Other GOP 2028 candidates with names include Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Governor Nicky Haley, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and even Donald Trump Jr. Trump didn’t name Vance like heirs in a February interview with Fox News, but South South Carolina GOP executive director Alex Stroman said Vance’s appointment to the RNC Finance Chair should question who is now Clear GOP Frontrunner in 2028.

“I think it’s a wise decision for the party to take on this role for the party, the president and the vice president. For the party, this is a major commitment from the White House to ensure that the party can raise the funds it needs to win the election. The political future. It’s a victory, a victory for everyone involved,” Stroman told DCNF. “Some of the legacy media really don’t understand why they want to play this game. That means JDVance is not the frontrunner of the Republican nomination, if not the 2028 presidency. This is a wise decision. JDVance will be the 2028 nomination. (Related: “Political Athlete”: JD Vance is emerging as the most active VP of decades)

Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) are awaiting President Donald Trump’s speech to a joint Congressional meeting held at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC on March 4, 2025 (Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The midterm of 2026 will be an important initial test for Vance and RNC. This was Trump’s revival ahead of the 2024 cycle and effectively took over. Vance is already very active as Vice President compared to his recent predecessor, so raising RNC cash to pursue and deploy election victory is the latest task he interacts with on a daily basis.

“Vance is a fundraiser, not a strategic role. So I think the advantage for him in this role is that if he raises money, he can look okay regardless of the outcome. “Then you get to the real advantage. That means they’re giving him the opportunity to meet all the major donors in the country for the next 18 months. That’s a real advantage for him in 2028… I don’t know that his appointment will remove all doubts, but from the second he was selected as a candidate for VP, the nomination in 2028 was his loss.”

CNN’s conservative on-air critic Scott Jennings told DCNF that Vance’s appointment to the main RNC post “recognizes what JD is revealing as an heir,” giving him a greater advantage over any challenger in the 2028 GOP Primary. Vance has already differentiated himself from most GOP politicians with contacts and connections in Silicon Valley, where he spent several years diving into the political field and working in the tech field after winning the 2022 Senate race in Ohio.

“Vance will have access to all the Republican money, all the donors, and honestly, a pretty big chunk of fundraising, that’s an advantage,” GOP strategist Mike McKenna told DCNF. “The tricky thing about money in politics these days is that there are so many, and there’s so much that besides the party equipment, so it’s not an advantage 20 or 40 years ago. But it’s still a pretty big advantage…it’s just a difficult one to beat the vice president sitting in the primary.”

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