Mitt Romney predicts 2028 Republican presidential candidate: Who does he think will replace Trump?

Utah Senator Mitt Romney, who will retire when the new Congress is sworn in this January, is showing interest in political commentary.

In an interview on CNN’s State of the Union Sunday, hosted by Jake Tapper, Romney spoke about the direction the Republican party is heading in and who could be nominated by the GOP in 2028. Though he led the top of the GOP ticket in 2012, Romney understands that his politics have been marginalized within his party and sees its future in the path laid by President-elect Donald Trump and the MAGA movement. In four years, Romney sees Vice President-elect JD Vance as a likely candidate to lead the party after Trump. “He’s smart, well-spoken, part of the MAGA movement,” said the Utah leader when describing Vance’s strengths as a possible presidential candidate.

JD Vance’s future depends on Donald Trump

As the new administration prepares to take office, Vance, who served with Romney in the Senate, is an understandable choice. At 40 years old, he represents a generation that Washington has heard very little from and is growing increasingly discontent with the status quo that the politics of Mitt Romney, Joe Biden, Mitch McConnell, and Nancy Pelosi have delivered to the American people. Though Vance has shown his ability to grow his favorability, that may not be enough to avoid finding himself in a position similar to that of former Vice President Mike Pence. Donald Trump has the power to shape his possible successor, but Vance’s loyalty will determine whether he chooses to pass that mantle to him after he is termed out of office.

Romney on the need for Republicans to ‘realign’ their political agenda

Of Republican members of Congress, Romney has been one of the President-elect’s strongest critics on Capitol Hill. Under the Biden administration, he and a handful of other Republicans have led efforts to pass bipartisan legislation, handing the administration various successes. However, the election results show that those legislative victories were not convincing enough to the voters.

During the interview, Romney’s arguments show that he understands that Trump’s victory gives the party new life. As the incoming administration has made its nominees public, Romney is puzzled by those frustrated that Donald Trump is following through on his campaign promises. Romney sees the cabinet nominees and Trump’s plans for mass deportation and high tariffs as fulfilling his platform and thinks that criticizing him for “doing what he said he was going to do” is counterproductive.

Instead, Romney urges those weary members of the GOP’s 2024 coalition to take a wait-and-see approach. His comments, though directed at those who voted for Trump but might be having second thoughts, are also a message to his party that maintaining the trust of those voters will be critical in securing future electoral victories. All he can do is urge patience, but it will be up to the Trump Administration to deliver.

When asked by Tapper if the GOP “will need to change,” Romney responded that thanks to Donald Trump, “the Republican Party has become the party of the working class, middle-class voter,” as he has been the only candidate since President George W. Bush to snatch that coalition away from the Democrats. However, to take advantage of that momentum, the Utah Senator urged the party to adopt policies that are more reflective of the opinions of their voter base. In describing a challenge the GOP faces, he admitted that the political agenda pushed by his party “do not necessarily line up with the interests of our voters,” adding that “reorientation” will be “necessary.” Oddly, the comments are a tacit admission that the policies championed by Romney’s Republican party were incompatible with their new voter base and that it could have been that agenda that cost the GOP the White House in 2012.