Vance and Ted Cruz head to Iowa for midterms and 2028 positioning

Two of the biggest names in the Republican Party will make stops in the coming days in Iowa, a key 2026 midterm battleground state whose caucuses, for half a century, have kicked off the GOP presidential nomination calendar.

Vice President JD Vance and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas will have the midterms in mind during their visits, which come just over six months before this year’s elections, when Republicans will defend their slim majorities in the Senate and House.

But once the midterm elections are over, the next presidential race officially begins. So Vance and Cruz’s travels could also pay off if either moves forward and launches the 2028 White House campaign in the race to succeed term-limited President Donald Trump.

With three competitive House seats as well as what are expected to be close Senate and gubernatorial matchups, veteran Republican strategist David Kochel said “Iowa matters.”

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“Because of how competitive Iowa is right now… there’s going to be a lot of money coming in and a lot of attention going to be paid and because it’s Iowa, I think we’ll have a pretty healthy parade of 2028 prospects coming in to try to do what they can to help in the midterms,” Kochel pointed out. “It’s the best excuse to come to Iowa and get to know people, be seen and test some messages.”

Cruz travels to Iowa on Friday, where he will deliver the keynote address at the annual spring launch of the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition, a highly influential social conservative political advocacy group in Iowa.

The title of the incendiary conservative senator’s speech is “Constitutional Courage – Cruzing to Victory: A Roadmap to 2026.”

Cruz won the 2016 Iowa presidential caucuses and was runner-up to Trump in that cycle’s explosive GOP presidential primaries. The senator carefully considered the possibility of running again in the 2024 cycle before deciding to seek re-election to the Senate.

“We’ll have plenty of time to make those decisions. I don’t have any announcements to make today,” Cruz recently responded when asked by Fox News Digital if he was seriously considering another White House run.

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Senator Ted Cruz holds a press conference at the United States Capitol in Washington, DC on December 15, 2025. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

But he appears to be setting the stage for a possible bid, as he positions himself as a conservative alternative to Vance, who is currently the favorite to be Trump’s MAGA and America First heir.

Cruz has attracted a lot of attention with his clashes with far-right figures, such as Tucker Carlson, and he has strengthened his already strong position among conservative leaders and donors. And he has increased his grassroots outreach with his popular and widely downloaded podcast, “Verdict with Ted Cruz.”

Vance stops in Iowa on Tuesday, where he will appear with Republican Rep. Zach Nunn, who faces a tough reelection this year in a swing district in the state’s southwest.

The trip — Vance’s first as vice president to Iowa or New Hampshire, which follows Iowa and sets up the first presidential primary in the GOP nomination calendar — comes ahead of what is widely expected to be a 2028 Vance campaign for the White House in the race to succeed his boss.

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Vice President JD Vance speaks during a Turning Point USA event at the Akins Ford Arena at the Classic Center in Athens, Georgia, April 14, 2026. (Chip Somodevilla/Reuters)

“He’s going to get a lot of exposure and TV coverage,” Kochel said of Vance.

Vance demurred when asked about 2028, calling the speculation “premature” and “disloyal” to Trump. He said he was focused on his job as vice president and helping Republicans defend their slim majority in the Senate and fragile majority in the House of Representatives in the midterms.

But Vance has assembled a political team of advisers who, if he runs as expected, could quickly put together a presidential campaign.

While Vance is the clear front-runner in early polls for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has seen his support for a possible presidential bid soar this year, thanks to an increase in his responsibilities and public visibility, most recently around the U.S. operation in Venezuela and the war in Iran.

Rubio — who, as a Florida senator, was part of the large field of Republican White House candidates that Trump defeated en route to victory in the 2016 presidential election — finished second to Vance last month in the straw poll for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).

Rubio’s rise is fueled in part by Trump, who has generously praised his secretary of state.

The president recently said Rubio would be “the greatest secretary of state in history.”

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks at the State Department, April 14, 2026. The United States announced sanctions against a Nicaraguan official linked to alleged human rights abuses under the Ortega-Murillo administration. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Trump has also promoted a Vance-Rubio ticket – calling it “unstoppable” a few months ago – but has not specified who should be at the top of that ticket.

But the president said last year that Vance was “very likely” his heir apparent. “In all honesty, he’s the vice president,” Trump added.

Rubio said Vanity Fair late last year, “If JD Vance runs for president, he will be our candidate, and I will be one of the first people to support him.”

Regardless, Republican sources confirmed to Fox News earlier this year that a group of GOP donors who support the secretary of state were quietly working on ways to boost Rubio’s political profile.

That doesn’t sit well with some in the president’s political orbit.

“Vice President Vance is the future of the Republican Party and Marco Rubio is one of his closest friends in the administration,” a member of Trump’s political orbit told Fox News.

“Controversial stories from some donors trying to sow chaos are not helpful,” said the agent, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely.

Vance also weighed in, telling Fox News’ Martha MacCallum in February that “Marco is my closest friend in the administration.”

And the vice president, in an interview on Fox News’ “The Story”,” said: “I think it’s so interesting that the media wants to create this conflict where there is only There is no conflict.”

Besides Vance, Cruz and Rubio, political experts are considering a number of other well-known Republican politicians as possible 2028 presidential contenders.

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, July 22, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

They are governors. Ron DeSantis of Florida, Brian Kemp of Georgia, Sarah-Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, former Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Josh Hawley of Missouri and Rick Scott of Florida.

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Nor should we ignore Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida, a MAGA champion who is running for governor this year.

Then there’s Donald Trump Jr., the president-elect’s eldest son and MAGA warrior. However, the younger Trump is very close to Vance, which would likely prevent him from making a bid for the White House in the next cycle.