The 2028 election season begins as both parties navigate midterm fallout

The final midterm votes are still being counted, but make no mistake: The next election season has already begun.

Presidential prospects in both parties jockeyed for position on Wednesday, even as the political world was digesting the impact of the Democratic wave that crashed over American politics the night before. Democrats celebrated their party’s stunning success — and began promoting themselves — while dejected Republicans scrambled to distance themselves from President Donald Trump’s wreckage.

The Republican with the most at stake was likely Vice President JD Vance, who entered Tuesday night as the GOP’s leading presidential prospect and woke up on Wednesday far more vulnerable — like any Republican who is close to Trump.

“The reason we lost is the war,” Vance said in a morning postmortem post on X. “If you’d like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay. Agree or disagree, that’s at least honest.”

He added, “And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.”

Vance has struggled to square his history of opposing foreign intervention with his defense of Trump’s war. He has said publicly that the conflict was necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, but his private skepticism has been widely reported.

Trump did not dispute Vance’s assessment, even as he defended the war. But he also made no effort to help Vance’s potential prospects, telling reporters, “Maybe he won’t run.” Vance had said he would make a decision after the election.

Voters still processing an extraordinary midterm campaign may not welcome an immediate pivot to 2028. But for would-be candidates, there is real urgency to move toward a White House bid in what is expected to be a wide-open contest in both parties.