Is Marco Rubio running for president in 2028?

Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State and former 2016 Republican presidential candidate, is the second-ranked name in the 2028 Republican field. In May 2026 President Trump discussed 2028 succession at the White House, naming Rubio alongside JD Vance as his two most likely successors -- a notable public signal from the sitting president about the men he sees carrying the party forward. Rubio has not made a formal announcement or FEC filing.

Rubio appears in all thirteen mid-2026 GOP primary polls -- the widest polling footprint of any candidate other than Vance. His support ranges from 12 to 35 percent across those surveys. Most June and July readings place him at 15 to 26 percent: Quantus Insights (July 3-7, 2026) 26 percent, Focaldata (June 26-30) 18 percent, Big Data Poll (June 26-28) 18 percent, McLaughlin and Associates (June 17-23) 15 percent, Echelon Insights (June 11-14) 15 percent, Focaldata (May 29-June 1) 18 percent, and Harvard-Harris (May 29-31) 21 percent. Two mid-May surveys produced higher readings: Overton Insights (May 16-20) placed him at 32 percent, and Emerson College (May 24-25) placed him at 35 percent -- within 0.9 points of Vance's 35.5 percent in that poll, the closest any challenger has come to Vance in any tracked mid-2026 GOP survey.

One structural consideration for a Rubio presidential run involves the 12th Amendment's same-state rule. Rubio is a Florida resident. So are Ron DeSantis (former Florida governor, likely 2028 candidate) and Donald Trump Jr. (possible candidate). The 12th Amendment bars electors from casting both a presidential vote and a vice-presidential vote for residents of their own state. Florida has 30 electoral votes, all classified Likely R in 2028. A Rubio ticket with either DeSantis or Trump Jr. as the vice-presidential choice would put those 30 electoral votes at risk under the same-state constraint. The 2000 election established the controlling precedent: Dick Cheney changed his voter registration from Texas to Wyoming before joining the George W. Bush ticket. Any Rubio-DeSantis or Rubio-Trump Jr. pairing would face the same structural pressure -- one of the two would need to change their legal state of residence before the election.

Rubio is constitutionally eligible. He is a natural-born U.S. citizen, is 55 years old as of mid-2026 -- well above the constitutional minimum of 35 -- and has been a U.S. resident his entire life. No legal bar prevents a 2028 candidacy.

The 2028 Republican field is led by Vice President JD Vance. Rubio's profile as Secretary of State -- a position at the center of the administration's foreign policy -- gives him a senior executive credential that would anchor his presentation in a primary campaign. No major candidate has formally declared as of mid-2026.