JD Vance's shadow campaign EXPOSED as he quietly courts billionaire donors at six-figure dinners

By CHARLIE SPIERING, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 05:12, 19 April 2026 | Updated: 05:12, 19 April 2026 Vice President JD Vance is tightening his ties to America’s billionaire elite, rubbing shoulders with some of the nation’s most powerful donors while serving as finance chair of the Republican National Committee and laying the groundwork for a potential presidential run. Since taking the position, Vance has presided over more than two dozen Republican National Committee fundraising events, bringing in upwards of $60 million, according to the New York Times. Vance’s unusual role channels the money he raises directly to the Republican Party, rather than through a personal political action committee that could bolster his own political ambitions. But the RNC has an agreement with the Vice President to send five percent of the funds raised online from small donors to his Working for Ohio PAC, according to the report. His fundraisers are well attended, with some of America’s wealthiest billionaires flocking to meet the vice president, either hosting events or opening their wallets in support. Among the most prominent figures in Vance’s orbit are Republican donor Miriam Adelson, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, billionaire investor and podcaster Chamath Palihapitiya, hedge fund manager John Paulson. Others include Blackstone co-founder Stephen A. Schwarzman, investor Jeff Yass, and Alex and Zach Witkoff.  Vice President JD Vance has presided over more than two dozen Republican National Committee fundraising events, bringing in upwards of $60 million. He is seen alongside wife, Usha, in January 2025 and Miriam Adelson, far right US Vice President JD Vance speaks to the media as President Donald Trump looks on during a ceremony in the Oval Office US Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance leave Air Force Two Hedge fund titan Paul Singer and billionaire heiress Rebekah Mercer have also been spotted at events with Vance. Prior to being selected as Trump's running mate, Vance already had long relationships with tech moguls like Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and venture capitalist Peter Thiel. The Vice President has enjoyed close proximity with fundraiser attendees, and he even gives out his phone number to some of the more prominent donors he meets. Donors are also positioning themselves close to the vice president as they increasingly view him as the heir-apparent to President Donald Trump. Vance is also welcoming powerful and wealthy individuals to his residence in Washington, DC for private dinners to have conversations about politics, the Times reported. Elsewhere, Vance has made several appearances alongside Charlie Kirk's widow, Erika Kirk, at various Turning Point USA events across the US, further cementing his profile as a prominent Republican public figure. The Vances grew closer to Erika and the Kirk family after traveling to Utah to be with the family after Charlie's assassination. The vice president was close personal friends with Kirk, and often turned to the young activist for political advice.  Kirk helped rally young people during Trump's 2024 campaign and also joined Vance on the campaign trail.  Vice President JD Vance already has close ties to some of the wealthiest tech moguls in America, including with Elon Musk and Venture capitalist Peter Thiel  The vice president has been spending a lot of time with prominent donors to raise money for the RNC  The vice president has not confirmed any plans to run for president, choosing instead to focus on the job he has now and get congressional Republicans elected for the midterms. But cultivating relationship with some of the most wealthy and powerful people in the country will benefit him if he chooses to run for president in 2028 or beyond. In a column for the Daily Mail earlier this week, Mark Halperin wrote how the Vance campaign are playing it cool. 'Inside Vance's orbit, there is zero panic—indeed, very little visible concern at all. The mood is confident, almost serenely so. They believe that if Vance chooses to run, he will command the loyalty of the party's biggest donors, the backing of the titans of tech, the counsel of its sharpest strategists, and the energy of its most important activists, both nationally and in the key early voting nomination states.   'He will eternally be the favorite son of Erika Kirk, Donald Trump, Jr. and many other boldface names in the Trump orbit. And above all, they expect he will have the backing that matters most: that of the man who remains both king and kingmaker of the Republican Party,' Halperin stated. 'If Vance wants the nomination, the odds are strong that Trump will clear the path. And if that happens, the rest of the pieces could fall into place with surprising speed: a unified party, a formidable fundraising machine—two billion dollars before the first votes are cast is not an outlandish projection—and a general election framed as a contest between continuity and confusion.'  Vance will campaign in Iowa on April 30 alongside Rep Zach Nunn ahead of a competitive midterm election. 'Iowa is at the center of the fight for our majority,' Nunn said in a statement provided to the Des Moines Register. 'Having the vice president on the ground is a testament to the momentum we're building and our commitment to finishing the job for working families.' Vance's visit would help lay the groundwork for any presidential bid.  Iowa Republicans are expected to once again host their first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses in 2028. Vance has made several appearances alongside Charlie Kirk's widow, Erika Kirk, at various Turning Point USA events across the US, further cementing his profile as a prominent Republican public figure Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that he will be 'one of the first people to support him' Vance if he decides to run for president Vice President JD Vance with American Pope Leo XIV in May 2025 The cover of Vance's forthcoming book about his Catholic faith. It is being published in June Many donors continue exchanging their thoughts about the post-Trump Republican party, including a number of people who have been impressed with Secretary of State Marco Rubio's service for President Trump.  But at this point, Rubio has stated that he will be 'one of the first people to support him' Vance if he decides to run for president.  That leaves donors with the choice of getting to know Vance or holding back their support in case another likely candidate emerges.  Last month, Vance, already a New York Times best-selling author, revealed he has written a new book about his spiritual journey from Christian to atheist to devout Catholic, further fueling speculation about his all-but-certain 2028 presidential bid. 'I've been writing this book for a long time, and I'm honored to finally be able to share the full story with you all,' Vance posted on X with a link to his upcoming book, 'Communion.'   'Communion is about my personal journey and how I found my way back to faith,' he wrote about the book, slated for release on June 16 by HarperCollins.  A book launch is often the clearest signal that an aspiring politician is laying the groundwork for a White House bid. Governors Gavin Newsom and Josh Shapiro have already released their own titles this year. 'Here we go with the 2028 campaign and pandering to the evangelicals,' one social media user commented on Vance's announcement.  Vance is widely expected to launch a presidential campaign for 2028, though he has said he won’t turn his attention to that effort until after the 2026 midterms later this year. According to prediction markets, Vance is widely favored to become the Republican presidential nominee in 2028. He has a 37 percent chance of doing so, according to Kalshi. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, for his part, holds a 25 percent chance. The book traces Vance’s spiritual journey: from the Christianity of his youth, through a period of atheism in college, to his return to faith in 2019 when he converted to Catholicism Vance is widely expected to launch a presidential campaign for the 2028 election, though he has said he's not going to focus on the gambit until after the 2026 November midterms  Your browser does not support iframes. 'By the time I left the Marines in 2007 and began college at The Ohio State University, I read Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris, and called myself an atheist,' he wrote in 2020 for The Lamp Magazine.  'Atheism leads to an undeniable familial and cultural rupture,' Vance wrote at the time. 'To be an atheist is to be no longer of the community that made you who you were.'  In the entry, he wrote that he embraced atheism in part to fit into 'elite' circles, despite his firmly rural upbringing. According to the publisher, the new work revisits threads left unfinished in his earlier bestseller, Hillbilly Elegy, which chronicled his Appalachian roots. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. 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