OAN Staff Blake Wolf
1:00 PM – Tuesday, December 30, 2025
In light of newly appointed Turning Point USA (TPUSA) CEO Erika Kirk’s official endorsement of Vice President JD Vance, the conservative nonprofit is reportedly preparing to deploy representatives across key battleground states, moving from simply supporting Vance to actively building a 2028 campaign infrastructure for him.
The move aims to boost Vance’s profile ahead of an anticipated 2028 presidential bid, with a specific focus on establishing an early ground game for the Iowa caucuses. This follows Ms. Kirk’s official endorsement of Vance to lead the party at TPUSA’s recent “AmericaFest” event.
“We are going to get my husband’s friend JD Vance elected for ‘28 in the most resounding way possible,” Kirk stated at the time.
The late TPUSA co-founder, Charlie, was a close confidant of the Vice President, with Vance crediting Kirk as a pivotal influence during his 2022 Ohio Senate campaign. Additionally, Charlie was a vocal advocate for Trump to select Vance as his running mate, championing him for the vice presidency despite Vance’s prior history of criticizing the President.
The conservative grassroots organization now aims its gaze toward the future of the Republican Party by positioning “boots on the ground” in key states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada — working to uplift support for Vance nearly three years before the next election.
However, analysts say that years of preparation and early campaigning could be necessary if the Republican Party wishes to retain control of the White House in 2028.
“He’s the clear-cut leader by a lot. This isn’t highly competitive. He’s the vice president of the U.S.,” stated Tyler Bower, the chief operating officer of TPUSA. “We want to vocalize early that we are leading the recruiting and preparation effort in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada for JD.”
Bower also noted that the GOP is preparing to settle any in-party disputes, and certain conversations are taking place now rather than the lead-up to the election.
“We’re rock solid. The right is hashing out policy disputes that usually surface right in the lead-up to a presidential election,” he stated. “We’re about two years ahead of schedule. Issues usually fought about heading into the 2028 convention were fought over and settled at AmericaFest.”
“The other side is a disaster,” Bower added. “We just put Nicki Minaj on stage blasting [California Governor] Gavin Newsom while it’s a total free-for-all over there.”
TPUSA spokesman Andrew Kolvet added that “if anybody was around the org in any way, shape, or form, they know that Charlie was very close to the vice president and had basically endorsed him already for months beforehand, so it was no surprise” in which direction TPUSA is heading in preparation for a post-Trump GOP.
Although Vance has not officially announced his decision to run for president in 2028, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also consistently indicated support for him.
“If JD Vance runs for president, he’s going to be our nominee, and I’ll be one of the first people to support him,” Rubio said earlier this month.
As Vance steps into his role as the unofficial “heir” to the MAGA movement, he faces the task of keeping a coalition together. This internal tension was on full display at the recent AmericaFest event, particularly after conservative commentator Ben Shapiro called for the condemnation of prominent movement figures such as Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens and Steve Bannon.
Shapiro stated that his dispute with these influential voices revolves around antisemitism, arguing that the “conservative moment is in danger from charlatans who claim to speak in the name of principle but actually traffic in conspiracism and dishonesty.”
In response, Kelly and Carlson separately argued that Shapiro’s condemnation was misguided, maintaining that their criticisms are directed at specific actions of the Israeli government rather than anti-Jewish sentiment. Kelly further emphasized that her loyalty remains with the U.S., labeling Shapiro’s approach as “Israel-first” during the public fallout.
“Ben is Israel first… And I’m sorry, but this behavior has proven that charge to be correct. Why would you divide the American conservative movement — which was gelling, which was becoming much more cohesive for a moment after Charlie died — over Israel?” Kelly asserted at AmericaFest.
During Vance’s speech at the event, he notably declined to condemn any conservative voices, proclaiming that the GOP has “far more important work to do than canceling each other.”
“I didn’t bring a list of conservatives to denounce or to de-platform,” Vance said. “Charlie invited all of us here for a reason, because he believed that each of us, all of us, had something worth saying, and he trusted all of you to make your own judgment.”
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