Republican Predicts Excuse Donald Trump Could Use to Replace JD Vance

On Friday, former Representative Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois, speculated on the possibility that former President Donald Trump might replace Ohio Senator JD Vance as his vice-presidential running mate. This speculation follows reports suggesting Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, could be re-evaluating his choice of Vance, especially in light of President Joe Biden's recent decision to withdraw from the race and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for the upcoming election.

Kinzinger, who represented Illinois in Congress from 2011 to 2023, shared his thoughts on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday evening. He suggested that there was a "greater than nothing, but less than likely" chance that Trump could replace Vance. Kinzinger posited that Trump might justify such a move by claiming, "The Dems did it, so I can."

Kinzinger's critique of Trump and the current Republican Party is well-known. He was one of two Republicans who served on the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, when Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a failed attempt to prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s 2020 election victory. The riot was fueled by Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud. Kinzinger has been a vocal critic of Trump and the Republican Party, even declaring the GOP's death after this year's Republican National Convention (RNC).

In response to the speculation, Trump’s communications director, Steven Cheung, dismissed the reports as unfounded. Cheung told Newsweek, "President Trump is thrilled with the choice he made with Senator Vance, and they are the perfect team to take back the White House. Any contrary reports are nothing but ridiculous fake news from either nonexistent sources or individuals who have no idea what's going on." He also accused the Democrats of being in disarray following Biden’s withdrawal, characterizing them as the true threat to democracy.

Trump himself defended Vance during a phone interview on Fox & Friends on Thursday. Speaking with hosts Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt, Brian Kilmeade, and Lawrence Jones, Trump described Vance as "fantastic" and indicated that it "wouldn't have mattered" if Kamala Harris had been selected before he announced his own running mate.

Despite this, Vance’s post-convention approval ratings have been notably poor. According to CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten, Vance is the first non-incumbent vice-presidential nominee since 1980 to receive a net-negative favorable rating immediately following a convention. Vance's rating stood at -6 points, contrasting sharply with the average net-positive rating of +19 points for vice-presidential picks since 2000. Enten highlighted Vance’s historic low rating as "making history in the completely wrong way."

If Trump were to consider replacing Vance, he would need to act swiftly. Mitchell Brown, a political science professor at Auburn University, explained to Newsweek that there are specific deadlines for filing to be on the ballot in each state. As long as a new vice-presidential candidate is selected before these deadlines, Vance could potentially be replaced.

However, the process is not straightforward. Brown referred to the Republican National Committee's rules from 2020, which outline that a vacancy for the Republican presidential nominee or their running mate can be filled by the committee. Alternatively, the committee could reconvene its national convention to vote on a replacement.