Joe Scarborough reveals who he thinks could run for president for the Republican Party in 2028
The former congressman, now host of ‘Morning Joe’, spoke to ‘Pod Save America’ about his expectations for the GOP nomination.
Politician-turned-TV personality Joe Scarborough has predicted that the Republican candidate in the next presidential election won’t be J.D. Vance, the current vice-president and favorite for the nomination.
“Going to get a lot darker before it gets better”
Scarborough, a former Republican congressman who now hosts the Morning Joe daily talk show, told Pod Save America this week: “I know this is shocking, [but] I think it might be somebody worse. Worse than Vance.”
When Pod Save America host Jon Favreau suggested the GOP nominee could be someone like the outspoken, hard-right political commentator Tucker Carlson, Scarborough responded: “That’s exactly what I’m thinking.”
“If Tucker Carlson doesn’t decide to run, I don’t know if he would or not, [I would still expect it to be] somebody from that wing of the movement. I don’t think I even want to say ‘party’ right now."
Scarborough, who left the Republican Party in 2017 over his opposition to the U.S.’s GOP president, Donald Trump, concluded: “This is going to get a lot darker before it gets better […].
“I think the Republicans are going to have to lose quite a few times before they either reform themselves or move into a new party.”
Who is leading the betting for the Republican nomination?
With Trump ineligible to run again in 2028, Vance is the 8/11 frontrunner for the GOP’s nomination, ahead of Marco Rubio, the Trump administration’s secretary of state, who is most commonly valued at 5/1, per Oddschecker.
Carlson, a former host on the conservative Fox News channel, is currently priced at up to 50/1.
The 56-year-old’s odds are considerably longer than those offered by some betting houses (as low as 11/2) on Trump mounting a constitution-busting third term. In a recent YouGov poll, moreover, 46% of respondents said they believed Trump will indeed try to secure a third term.
Trump has regularly teased an attempt to remain in the White House beyond January 2029, in the face of a U.S. constitution that reads: “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice”.
Last fall, the 79-year-old told reporters he “would love to do” another term, while as recently as last week, he wrote on Truth Social: “Record numbers all over the place! Should I try for a fourth term?”
Donald Trump asked on Truth Social whether he should try for a fourth term.
— Complex (@Complex) January 23, 2026
“RECORD NUMBERS ALL OVER THE PLACE!
SHOULD I TRY FOR A FOURTH TERM?” pic.twitter.com/EimdcVIE0k
Republican candidate favorites - top 10 in the betting:
- 1. J.D. Vance
- 2. Marco Rubio
- 3. Donald Trump Sr.
- 4. Ron DeSantis
- 5. Donald Trump Jr.
- 6. Peter Hegseth
- 7. Ivanka Trump
- 8. Nikki Haley
- 9. Marjorie Taylor Greene
- 10. Tulsi Gabbard
Source: Oddschecker
When is the 2028 U.S. presidential election?
The next U.S. presidential election is to take place on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2028. Candidates normally confirm their intention to run for the presidency by spring of the year before the election, with party primaries held during the first half of election year.
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