Although Trump's return to the White House was expected to position his vice president, JD Vance, as the candidate, Rubio is gradually taking on that role. Politico reports that an increasing number of Trump's associates and donors want to see Rubio as the candidate in two years, while Vance has largely lost the trust of this circle close to Trump. According to the report, Rubio has done an enormous amount of work to "break through" among Trump's voters, gathered in the "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) movement, who previously distrusted him due to his past criticisms of the U.S. president. The U.S. Secretary of State won them over with his loyalty, as well as his role in the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolรกs Maduro, who was ousted from power in January by a U.S. military operation. Many reports from Washington indicated that Rubio was the strongest advocate of this move. Additionally, JD Vance made a large number of gaffes in his first year in office, and many also fault him for not openly supporting Trump and his policies. This is particularly evident regarding the war with Iran. When the U.S. and Israeli attack on Iran began, Vance was completely out of the public eye for several days, and even when he returned to social media and television appearances, he mostly spoke about domestic politics. Many members of the MAGA movement perceived this as a form of betrayal and have largely turned to Rubio, portraying him as the ideal candidate for 2028. However, the decision on this matter will most likely be made only in 2028, and it will be largely determined by the results of the Republicans in the elections this November.