During a busy week in the nation's capital, far from the action, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis He had no difficulty keeping his name in the political spotlight.
“This is the time for action. And it's time for Washington, D.C., to deliver results for the American people. There are no more excuses for Republicans,” the two-term conservative governor and 2024 Republican presidential nominee said Thursday as he announced for Florida. Attorney General Ashley Moody succeeds Senator Marco Rubio in the Senate.
two days ago, President-elect Trump He gave his archrival in the GOP primary a salute after the governor called a special state legislative session to carry out Trump's expected crackdown on immigration.
“Thank you Ron, we hope the other rulers follow suit!” The president-elect said in a social media post.
Vance is the favorite, but here are the other Republicans who could run for president in 2028
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks and Utah Governor Spencer Cox listens before President-elect Trump talks at a meeting with Republican governors at Mar-a-Lago on January 9, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Given the national profile he has built over the past four years, the governor of one of the nation's most important states will likely continue to remain in the headlines as he takes the lead on some of the country's most important issues.
The spotlight should help DeSantis if he ends up shooting a second in a row Republican Party nomination for president The race will take place in 2028, a race in which soon-to-be Vice President J.D. Vance will be considered the front-runner as the heir apparent to America First and MAGA Trump.
“He needs to do what he did in 2022, which is pick good fights. He's shown a lot of ability to pick good fights with the left both in Florida and nationally,” David Kuchel, a longtime Republican strategist, said of DeSantis.
RNC chairman says GOP has deep bench for 2028
“I think he's going to be in demand to come do things in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina,” said Kuchel, a veteran of multiple U.S. tours. Republican presidential campaignsreferring to the three key states that vote early in the Republican presidential primaries.
“I wouldn't change too much of the way he ran in the run-up to his 2024 campaign. The problem is he basically ran against an incumbent president. He didn't have the wrong playbook. He had the wrong course.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis holds a news conference with emergency officials as a hurricane approaches his state, October 9, 2024 (AP)
While the initial moves in the 2028 White House race will likely begin in the coming months, including some early official visits, most Americans won't pay attention until after the 2026 midterm elections, when the next presidential campaign officially begins. . That's when DeSantis concludes his second and final four-year term in Florida, allowing him to focus 100% on a race for the White House if it's within his grasp.
But what about another high-profile Republican governor who is likely to have national ambitions in 2028?
These are the Democrats who could run for the White House in 2028
The Virginia Constitution does not allow incumbent governors to run for a second consecutive term Governor Glenn Youngkin He will be out of his position at Richmond within a year.
Compared to DeSantis, who also has a large GOP majority in his state legislature, which will allow him to continue enacting a conservative agenda, Virginia is a purple state where Democrats have a slight upper hand in the legislature.
“It might be a little harder for Youngkin, a little harder for him to find ways to stay in the news” after he leaves office after a year, Kuchel suggested.
But “You're going to see me a lot,” Younkin predicted.
“We have had a very strong agenda of being conservative over the last 14 months,” he said in an interview with Fox News Digital in November. “But part of this agenda that I have is to make sure that (Lieutenant Governor) Wensom Sears is our next governor. (Virginia Attorney General) Jason Miyares is back as our attorney general and lieutenant governor which we will choose in our primary.”
Youngkin, who galvanized Republicans across the country in 2021 as a first-time candidate hailing from the party's business wing, beat former Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe to become the first GOP candidate in more than a dozen years to win gubernatorial election in a one-time election. A state that has trended Democratic over the past decade. It's also possible he could end up in the Trump administration after his term in Richmond expires at sunset in a year.
“I told the president when I called him and told him that I wanted to finish my term, and that I would be available to help him at any time during my time as governor and afterward,” Youngkin told Fox News Digital, referring to a call he had with him. It was held with Trump immediately after the November election.
But if he doesn't enter the Trump administration, another path for Youngkin to stay in the spotlight in 2026 would be to cross the country on behalf of fellow Republicans running in the midterm elections. It's a role Youngkin previously played in 2022, helping fellow Republican governors and gubernatorial candidates.
“He's got to block and tackle, go state by state, help a lot of candidates, raise a lot of money for them. And elect a bunch of governors,” Kochel suggested. “This is the playbook for him.”
What about nikki haley, The former Republican governor of South Carolina and former US ambassador to the United Nations in the first Trump administration, and who was the last contender standing against Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential primary?
Nikki Haley, former United Nations ambassador and former South Carolina governor, speaks at the Republican National Convention on July 17, 2024, in Milwaukee. (Fox News/Paul Steinhauser)
Out of office and isolated from Trump's world while still facing social media buzz from the president-elect, Haley's ability to attract attention should she seek the presidency again could prove to be a tougher climb within a party once again on its knees. And the future president.
Haley has a weekly national radio show on Sirius XM, where she said a few weeks ago, “I had no interest in being in (Trump's) cabinet.”
But a lot could happen in the two years remaining until the next official race for the White House begins. There may be some regret among voters if the new administration does not succeed in implementing some of its goals.
“While J.D. Vance starts out as the front-runner right now, there are a million miles to go between now and then,” veteran Republican strategist Colin Reed told Fox News.
Kuchel added that for some Republicans considering a run for president in 2028, “I think a little strategic distance is not a bad idea. Because you don't know what's going to happen over the next two years.”
But holding statewide office — whether as governor or senator — does not guarantee favorable coverage.
“Having a day job cuts it both ways. It gives you a platform, a megaphone, and the ability to break the news whenever you want. But it also carries with it the responsibilities of governing, legislating, or being part of government bodies, whether it's Congress. Or the state that “You run it, things can go wrong and they end up on your doorstep and become political baggage.”
“History is full of those who ran and won a second term only to become political baggage at home and a political nuisance on the campaign trail,” Reed warned.
