Rubio said to be eyeing exit from Trump administration after midterm rout

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, widely regarded as one of the Republican Party's top contenders for the 2028 presidential election, is expected to resign in the wake of the party's midterm defeat, according to analysts. Leading Republican presidential hopefuls are said to be looking to distance themselves from President Donald Trump, whom many blame for the crushing losses.

The Independent reported Thursday (local time), citing a close associate of Rubio, that "it makes complete sense for Rubio to resign and leave the Trump administration." The associate told the outlet that Rubio is currently the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, saying he is "clearly ahead of Vice President JD Vance," and added that "you can't run for president while serving as secretary of state, and being tied to this administration only hurts his path to the White House."

Another Republican source told the paper that Rubio "will be gone after the midterms" and that "four or five" cabinet members would follow. Both the White House and the State Department dismissed the report as baseless misinformation, but considerable political commentary holds that a Rubio resignation would not be surprising.

Unlike Vance, Rubio had visibly tried to stay out of the midterm campaign. He traveled abroad during the Republican National Convention in September, and when Trump called him onstage at campaign rallies, Rubio offered only brief, perfunctory remarks before stepping off.

Rubio cited the principle that a secretary of state does not involve himself in domestic elections, but analysts suggested his calculation was also shaped by a desire to insulate himself from the political damage the Iran war could inflict on the Trump administration ahead of the 2028 race.

With the Republican midterm rout likely to weaken the influence of Trump's core MAGA (Make America Great Again) base, staying close to the president is seen as increasingly counterproductive for anyone with presidential ambitions.

Vance, Rubio's chief rival for the 2028 nomination, also moved quickly to put distance between himself and Trump. The day after the defeat, Vance posted a lengthy message on social media attributing the midterm losses to the Iran war. The post carried the clear implication that he had opposed the war, that Trump had pushed ahead regardless and brought the humiliating defeat upon himself, and that the conflict must now end — a calculated move to shed responsibility for the war and protect his standing as a presidential contender within the party.

The Wall Street Journal published an editorial saying Vance had jumped ship at a critical moment, undermining his superior and positioning himself for a presidential run.

Analysts also expect the exodus from the Trump administration to extend beyond the cabinet, with lower-ranking officials also looking for the exits.

Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for civil rights at the Department of Justice, stepped down Friday — the first senior Trump administration official to resign since the midterm election, two days after the results came in.

Dhillon led efforts to dramatically scale back the Civil Rights Division, which has historically championed anti-discrimination enforcement and the expansion of civil rights, in line with the Trump administration's push to dismantle DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — policies. Dhillon launched investigations targeting university diversity programs and oversaw what was described as the largest election-monitoring operation in history during the midterms.

In the process, three-quarters of the division's staff departed. With the Democratic Party vowing to launch a series of investigations into the Trump administration beginning next year, Dhillon was seen as unlikely to escape scrutiny.