Can Vance make Trump’s party his own? He should look to Italy’s Giorgia Meloni.

The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prevents presidents from being elected to more than two terms. With President Trump winning re-election in 2024, he will not be eligible to run again.

This reality has both Democrats and Republicans asking themselves whether “Trumpism” will survive once he exits the political stage. The second question often debated is who will inherit Trump’s base, and can his successor sustain Trump’s hold on the Republican Party and the MAGA movement.

The person most likely to inherit Trump’s base is Vice President JD Vance. In many ways, Vance is more aligned with the MAGA movement than Trump himself — most notably on foreign policy, U.S. relations with Israel and the role of religion in our nation’s public affairs.

After the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk in September of 2025, it was Vance who took the leading role in eulogizing Kirk, both defining and defending his Christian populist narrative before the country.

During his tenure in office, Vance has worked hard to develop and maintain close working relationships with a network of MAGA associated advocacy organizations, think tanks, influencers, podcasters, and donors. He is also one of the few high-profile Republican elected officials who has refused to publicly condemn or disavow his friendship with Tucker Carlson, a MAGA favorite who continues to make incendiary remarks about Israel and American Jews.  

Although Vance shares Trump’s policy prescriptions on illegal immigration, trade, tariffs, and other domestic issues, he seems far more skeptical of long-standing U.S. global security relationships. He often criticizes NATO and has expressed little public support for defending Taiwan from a potential Chinese invasion.

He has also recently begun to distance himself from Trump on Israel and the war in Iran, and he has been a consistent critic within the administration of U.S. involvement in Ukraine. In fact, Vance has shown little interest, unlike Trump, in using U.S. military power and........

© The Hill