Rubio may leave Trump's Cabinet to prepare for 2028 after midterm defeat

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is reportedly considering leaving the Trump administration to prepare for the 2028 presidential race after the Republicans’ midterm defeat; the White House and State Department dismissed the claim as “baseless.”

British newspaper The Independent reported that U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Adviser Marco Rubio could leave the Trump administration to prepare for the 2028 presidential election. The newspaper cited unnamed Republican Party and British government sources. Rubio has made no statement about resigning or running for president.

The newspaper claimed that Rubio was one of four or five senior officials considering leaving their posts after Republicans lost control of the House of Representatives and the Senate in Tuesday’s midterm elections. A Republican source who spoke to the newspaper said Rubio would “leave after the midterms.” A person close to Rubio also said that the secretary “cannot run for president while he is Secretary of State.”

Rubio, Bolivya Devlet Başkanı Rodrigo Paz ile bir görüşmede (arşiv)

According to the sources, Rubio would need to distance himself from the administration, particularly over the war with Iran, to mount a possible presidential bid. Vice President JD Vance, seen as Rubio’s strongest rival for the Republican nomination, also attributed the party’s defeat to the war, saying, “The reason we lost is the war.”

The White House described the claims as “baseless, fake conspiracy theories.” The State Department also rejected the claim as “completely baseless fake news” based on fabricated anonymous sources. In September, Rubio said he “currently had no plans” to run for president.

Bloomberg also reported Thursday that Rubio was considering leaving the administration after the midterm defeat.