A new poll from New Hampshire, the state that for a century has held the first Republican presidential primary, is the latest to indicate that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is gaining ground in a hypothetical 2028 GOP nomination matchup with Vice President JD Vance.
\nVance stands at 36% support among likely GOP primary voters in New Hampshire, with Rubio at 26%, according to a University of New Hampshire (UNH) Granite State Poll released this week.
\nThat\u2019s a massive shift from the previous UNH 2028 presidential nomination survey, conducted in February, which indicated Vance topping Rubio 53% to 7%.
\nAOC SURGES PAST BUTTIGIEG, LEAVES HARRIS AND NEWSOM IN THE DUST, IN NEW 2028 POLL
\nVance has long been viewed as the heir apparent to term-limited President Donald Trump and his MAGA and America First base.\u00a0
\nWhile Vance remains the clear hypothetical frontrunner, Rubio has narrowed the gap in national polls and surveys conducted in key early-voting presidential primary states ahead of a race that is not expected to begin in earnest until after this autumn\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n
Rubio\u2019s rise in the 2028 polls this year comes amid an increase in his responsibilities and public profile, including his role in the U.S. operation in Venezuela and the ongoing war against Iran.
\nRubio, who as a senator from Florida was one of more than a dozen Republican contenders who ran and lost to Trump in the tumultuous 2016 presidential\u00a0primary, came in a close second to Vance earlier this year in the closely watched 2028 Republican presidential nomination straw poll at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, which is better known by its acronym CPAC.
\nSen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who ran for the nomination in 2016 and is mulling another bid, stood a distant third at 8% in the new UNH survey, along with former ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who was the runner-up to Trump in 2024.
\nRAND PAUL FLOATS POSSIBLE 2028 RUN AS HE PUTS MORE DAYLIGHT BETWEEN HIMSELF AND TRUMP<\/p>\n
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who also bid for the nomination in 2024, grabbed 6% support, with everyone else tested at 4% or less.
\n\u201cThere\u2019s nobody else in the conversation besides those two, so this poll makes sense,\u201d New Hampshire-based Republican consultant David Carney, a veteran of numerous presidential campaigns, told Fox News Digital, referring to Vance and Rubio.
\nThe latest surveys and straw poll results are fuel for intrigue over what some in the\u00a0Republican Party\u00a0see as a budding rivalry between Rubio and Vance, who describe each other as friends.
\nPartially fueling Rubio\u2019s rise is Trump, who has lavishly praised his secretary of state.
\nThe president earlier this year declared that Rubio would go down as \u201cthe greatest secretary of state in history.\u201d
\nTrump has also promoted a Vance-Rubio ticket \u2014 calling it \u201cunstoppable\u201d \u2014 but has not said who should be at the top of the ticket.
\nCHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE 2026 ELECTIONS<\/p>\n
But the president did say last year that Vance is \u201cmost likely\u201d his heir apparent.\u00a0
\n\u201cIn all fairness, he\u2019s the vice president,\u201d Trump added.
\nWhile Vance has demurred when questioned about 2028, he has built a political team of advisors who, if he runs as expected, would quickly build out a presidential campaign.
\nRubio, who is crisscrossing the globe as part of his job requirements, doesn\u2019t have a similar group of political aides. And Rubio has said he\u2019ll back Vance if the vice president launches a 2028 campaign.
\nRegardless, Republican sources confirmed to Fox News earlier this year that a group of GOP donors supporting the secretary of state is quietly exploring ways to boost Rubio\u2019s political profile.
\nThat\u2019s not sitting well with some in the president\u2019s political orbit.
\nDEMOCRACY \u201926: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB<\/p>\n
\u201cVice President Vance is the future of the Republican Party, and Marco Rubio is one of his closest friends in the administration,\u201d an operative in Trump\u2019s political orbit told Fox News Digital earlier this year.
\n\u201cThe divisive stories from some donors trying to cause chaos are not helpful,\u201d the operative, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, emphasized.
\nVANCE, CRUZ, HEAD TO IOWA ON 2026 MISSIONS AS 2028 GOP RACE TO SUCCEED TRUMP HEATS UP<\/p>\n
Vance has also weighed in, telling Fox News\u2019 Martha MacCallum earlier this year that \u201cMarco is my closest friend in the administration.\u201d
\nAnd the vice president, in his interview on Fox News\u2019 \u201cThe Story,\u201d added, \u201cI think it\u2019s so interesting the media wants to create this conflict where there just isn\u2019t any conflict.\u201d
\nTrump will have a massive influence on the 2028 GOP nomination race to succeed him. An endorsement from the president would give a major boost to whomever he backs.
\nBut a longtime Republican strategist, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, offered a warning for the vice president.\u00a0
\n\u201cVance is in the catbird seat until something really goes bad, and Trump is going to blame him. \u2026 I can\u2019t imagine Vance walking this tightrope for two more years without pissing off Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n
This post appeared first on https:\/\/www.foxnews.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"