Vice President JD Vance and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg are emerging as the early front-runners for their parties’ 2028 presidential nominations, according to a newly released Emerson College poll, as reported by The New York Post.
Among Republican primary voters, Vance leads with 46% support. Secretary of State Marco Rubio follows with 12%, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis polls at 9%, and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. holds 5%.
The poll signals a significant rise for Vance since the last Emerson survey in November.
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On the Democratic side, Buttigieg leads with 16%, edging out former Vice President Kamala Harris at 13%. California Governor Gavin Newsom and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro are tied at 12% and 7%, respectively, while Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also sits at 7%.
However, 23% of Democratic voters remain undecided.
Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, noted that Vance has “solidified” his status as the GOP front-runner.
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His climb in favorability comes after being named President Trump’s running mate at the 2024 Republican National Convention and later elected Vice President.
In contrast, support for Harris has declined since she held 37% in Emerson’s November poll. Following her defeat to President Trump in the 2024 election, Harris vowed that it was “not in my nature to go quietly into the night.”
However, she has yet to formally announce whether she intends to run for president again or seek the California governorship in 2026.
President Trump’s job approval rating is currently split, with 45% approving and 46% disapproving. Despite his prominent support for Vance, Trump has not officially declared him the heir to the Make America Great Again movement.
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In an interview last month, Trump said, “You look at Marco, you look at JD Vance, who’s fantastic,” during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press.
Another poll conducted in May by JL Partners also showed Vance leading the Republican field with 46% support among registered voters.
The Emerson survey further found Republicans and Democrats evenly matched on the generic congressional ballot, with each party receiving 42% support from registered voters.
The poll was conducted June 24–25 with 1,000 registered voters and has a margin of error of ±3 percentage points.
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