Trump Rules Out Vice Presidential Run to Stay in Power in 2028
During a conversation with the press aboard his plane traveling between Japan and Malaysia, U.S. President Donald Trump responded to rumors about the possibility of him running for vice president in the 2028 elections—a notion proposed by some of his supporters as a potential workaround to the Twenty-Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which limits presidential terms to two.
Trump firmly denied such a move, stating, “I have the right to do it, but I won’t. That would be a kind of trickery, and it’s not right.”
With this statement, Trump sought to put an end to speculations that have circulated for months regarding his candidacy for vice president alongside another nominee. This strategy would theoretically allow him to return to the White House if the duo won and then the elected president resigned later.
Trump clarified that he wants to maintain a transparent image in front of his supporters and the public, emphasizing that “running for vice president in order to assume the presidency later indirectly is not an honorable action.”
Nevertheless, the idea has not entirely disappeared from discussions within his political camp. Some of his supporters from the “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) base suggested a scenario where the current vice president, J.D. Vance, would be the Republican nominee for president in 2028, while Trump serves as vice president, allowing him to regain power if Vance resigns after winning.
The emergence of this hypothesis has reignited discussions about the limits of presidential power in the United States, as the Twenty-Second Amendment prohibits anyone from being elected president more than twice. Since his second victory in 2024 and taking office in January 2025, Trump has hinted multiple times at his desire to remain involved in the political arena longer.
His withdrawal from the idea of running for vice president is seen as a step aimed at quelling criticisms that accuse him of seeking to circumvent constitutional institutions. In a politically tense environment, with questions surrounding the balance of powers in the country, it seems that the U.S. president wanted to send a reassuring signal to both the institutions and the voters.
However, questions remain open as the election date approaches and rivalries within the Republican Party intensify, while Trump’s standing in the party fuels various speculations about his political future.
Ultimately, Trump’s recent stance demonstrates his rejection of using the vice presidency as an indirect path to the presidency in 2028, a move that could settle the legal and political controversy, but does not close the door on other possibilities the dominant figure in the Republican landscape may consider as the next elections draw near.
