Who will be the next leader of the Republican party? Will the Grand Old Party, or GOP, devolve into infighting without Donald Trump? The answers to those two questions are “who knows” and “yes.”
This entire discussion is dependent on the idea that Trump will not try to run for an illegal third term, which he has said he won’t do. But without Trump, who does the GOP turn to?
The party seems set on staying the course with the MAGA wing of their party; so who inside Trump’s orbit will take over?
Some obvious picks would be JD Vance or Ron DeSantis, but both of them lack charisma and relatability. Vance seems like a bit of a weirdo, and the more people learn about his benefactor Peter Thiel — who had trouble answering when he was asked whether he thought the human race should continue — the more Vance’s connection to the billionaire will hurt him. In addition, even though Vance has publicly laughed at the memes people have been making about him, these photos all over the internet will hurt him overall since it shows younger people don’t like or respect the vice president.
Ron DeSantis is another big name, but he lost much of his momentum in his aborted 2024 presidential run. Especially because he was Trump’s opposition, DeSantis may have angered the MAGA base for having the temerity to run against Trump.
Also, the significant aura loss that DeSantis suffered when he was caught wearing lifts in his shoes could be devastating.
Another option may be Vivek Ramaswamy, also a 2024 presidential candidate, who is currently running for governor in Ohio. Ramaswamy is young and well-educated, having attended Harvard University for undergrad and Yale University for law school. He was a businessman in the pharmaceutical industry before turning to politics, and most importantly, he has Trump’s blessing, having been endorsed by the president in his gubernatorial run.
Ramaswamy has two obvious yet glaring characteristics that may make his presidential run difficult: Unlike many former Republican candidates, he is not white and he’s not Christian. Ann Coulter, a prominent Republican media figure, even told Ramaswamy that she would not vote for him because he is Indian. To some Republican voters like Coulter, this is an issue that rules Ramaswamy out. This is clearly a display of racism — which, unfortunately, seems to be rife within the GOP establishment and among some, though not all, of their voters.
Moderation does not seem to be in the cards for Republicans either. Since 2016, the party has either pushed out or silenced Trump’s Republican opponents, calling almost any semi-moderate Republican a “Republican in Name Only.” This has effectively forced Republicans with moderate views into hiding.
I also think that the far right is unlikely to take over. Obviously, Trump and his people are far right, but I am referring to the Marjorie Taylor Greenes and Lauren Boeberts of the world, who make centrists like John Fetterman look like Karl Marx. These people, while they may have a strong local following, do not yet have broad national appeal.
Whether the Republicans will be able to recapture the magic — or dark magic, depending on who you ask — of Trump’s campaign style is up for debate. I think it is doubtful: They have no leader with half as much charisma or charm as Trump. Some of their would-be leaders, like Ivy League-educated Vance and Ramaswamy, come off as the East Coast Washington establishment they purport to hate.
If Trump does not run for an illegal third term, which he has recently said he won’t, Republicans will be forced to search for a new leader among these somewhat uninspiring options.
Robby Wolff is a combined journalism and international affairs major. He can be reached at [email protected].
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