According to Business Insider, Ohio Senator James David Vance has had a tough week and a half since announcing his candidacy as former President Donald Trump's vice presidential candidate. Although Trump insists that he will continue to run with Vance, the senator's poor performance in the polls, coupled with Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign momentum, has left some people wondering: Will Trump replace Vance? If so, how?
Technically, Trump can still choose a new vice presidential candidate, the report said. But such a decision must be made as soon as possible.
The Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee have different rules for how to fill vacancies on the presidential or vice presidential ticket. The Republican National Committee explains in Rule 9 how to fill a vacancy on the vice presidential ticket that may occur "by death, refusal, or other cause."
Under that rule, Republicans could choose to reconvene their convention or have a small group of members of the Republican National Committee vote to decide on Vance's replacement.
The report said Amy Darcy, former CEO of the Democratic National Committee, said the timing issues may be more complicated than the specific rules.
"I think sometimes people forget that some people vote in September. Some states have early voting in September," Darcy said. "So the presidential election is not just an election that happens in November. The worst-case scenario is that your candidate doesn't appear on the ballot in a particular state."
Kenneth Meyer, a political science professor who recently retired from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said it was crucial that the rule explicitly apply only to situations where Vance voluntarily withdraws from the race. He said there was no precedent for forcibly stripping a vice presidential candidate of the nomination after the national convention.
Meyer also said that the upcoming voting deadlines in states pose major problems that will become increasingly complicated once ballots have been printed. He said replacing Vance, the vice presidential candidate, would be "extremely disruptive" both organizationally and politically.
One of Vance's biggest problems is his approval rating, according to the report - a CNN poll analysis found that he was the least popular vice presidential candidate after the Republican National Convention since 1980. The reason is that his past remarks on social media have been re-opened and his embarrassing performance during the campaign.
Vance warned in a 2021 video that sparked a nationwide backlash that the country was being run by "a bunch of miserable, childless cat-loving ladies" and cited Vice President Kamala Harris as an example.
In other segments, Vance suggested higher taxes on Americans without children and that people with families should be able to vote on their children's behalf.
Harris' campaign quickly capitalized on the attention, portraying Vance as a "weirdo" with ideas that were "out of touch with reality." A Republican strategist said the Trump campaign was "caught off guard" by the attacks against Vance, according to the report.
Although Trump has repeatedly expressed his support for Vance, there are reports that some people around Trump question whether Vance is a wise choice as a vice presidential candidate when Harris is almost certain to become the Democratic presidential nominee.