Rubio sets the end of Trump's term as his horizon

Marco Rubio said he intends to remain in Donald Trump's administration until the current presidential term ends in January 2029. He stated that position in an interview released Thursday in response to reports that he might leave the Cabinet early. Rubio also serves as the U.S. national security adviser.

The secretary of state expressed frustration with repeated questions about his political ambitions and said he would no longer comment on the race expected in 2028. His statement is not a campaign announcement: he also has not confirmed that he will seek the Republican nomination when that contest arrives.

Both the White House and State Department rejected reports of a possible resignation. Dylan Johnson, deputy assistant secretary for global public affairs, called the reports unfounded; White House spokesperson Davis Ingle dismissed them and said the president's team remains united.

Speculation had intensified after the midterm elections. Some reports, attributed to anonymous Republican contacts and British government sources, said Rubio was considering leaving his posts to prepare a presidential campaign. The same reports portrayed him as a potentially competitive candidate against Vice President JD Vance. They also suggested that four or five other Cabinet members might leave, a possibility U.S. authorities did not confirm.

The electoral landscape fueling those reports included Democratic gains in both chambers of Congress, according to projections cited in election coverage. Estimates placed the party near 244 seats in the House and mentioned victories in Texas and Kansas. The Republican succession, however, still has no candidacies officially announced by Rubio or Vance.

Rubio ran against Trump in the 2016 Republican primaries but left the race and endorsed him. From the White House, Trump has mentioned a possible Vance-Rubio ticket on several occasions, without either man saying that he seeks a place on a ticket. For now, remaining in the Cabinet is the position Rubio himself has expressed.