<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Vice President JD Vance declined to endorse Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) for another term should the Republican Party maintain control of the Senate after November’s elections.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">President Donald Trump has had disagreements with Thune regarding the Senate’s refusal to pass the SAVE America Act, an election integrity bill, prior to the midterm elections. Trump also did not support Thune as the next Senate leader, stating previously, “we’re going to find out.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Vance expressed a similar viewpoint on Thursday afternoon. </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“It’s just not my business,” Vance told reporters during a White House press briefing. “It’s the business of Republican senators to determine who their next leader will be.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Vance spoke positively of Thune, who is generally well-regarded by fellow Republican senators. </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“I will say about John Thune that we have a very good relationship,” said Vance. “He has a very good relationship with the president of the United States. That doesn’t mean you don’t disagree with people from time to time or have a preference or a priority that’s going to be different from the Senate majority leader.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Republicans are facing challenges in maintaining control of the House against Democrats. Thune has indicated concerns that the Senate could also be at risk. </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“I worry about that, for sure,” Thune stated in a Tuesday interview with South Dakota outlet Keloland News.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Despite Republican campaign organizations significantly out-raising their Democratic counterparts, individual Democratic candidates in key Senate races have a considerable cash advantage over their Republican rivals.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Vance reiterated his focus on helping the GOP retain control of both chambers rather than engaging in leadership disputes within the party. </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“It’s really not my business weeks, months before a Senate election, to talk about who should be the next Republican majority leader,” he told reporters. “I suspect John Thune will run again. I suspect that he’ll get the support of a lot of his colleagues. But I would defer to those folks about who their next leader is going to be. The most important thing, and I think John Thune would agree with this — I know the president agrees with this — is we got to keep the Republican Senate majority.”</p>