JD Vance

Latest News: JD Vance Becomes Vice President-Elect

JD Vance’s political journey is poised for a dramatic expansion following the announcement of his vice president-elect status early Wednesday morning. The 40-year-old Ohio Senator secured his place as the Republican vice president-elect after Donald Trump was projected to win the 2024 presidential election.

In a victory speech, Vance expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to join Trump in this new chapter. “Well, Mr. President, I appreciate you allowing me to join you on this incredible journey. I thank you for the trust that you’ve placed in me. And I think we just witnessed the greatest political comeback in the history of the United States of America,” Vance stated, accompanied by his wife, Usha Vance. As of Wednesday afternoon, Trump and Vance had secured or held leads in every major battleground state, amassing 292 electoral votes—well beyond the 270 required to win. Additionally, their ticket triumphed in Ohio by a margin of more than 11 points, Vance’s home state.

Who is JD Vance?

JD Vance, a U.S. Senator for Ohio since 2023, is now the vice president-elect alongside 2024 presidential victor Donald Trump. Vance, a former U.S. Marine Corps member, graduated from Yale Law School in 2013. Following his legal education, he worked as a corporate lawyer and venture capitalist. He is also widely recognized for his best-selling memoir Hillbilly Elegy, which was adapted into a 2020 film starring Amy Adams and Glenn Close.

Early Life and Family

Born James Donald Bowman on August 2, 1984, in Middletown, Ohio, JD Vance was the son of Beverly Vance and Donald Bowman. He grew up with his older half-sister, Lindsay Lewis Ratliff, and a number of step-siblings. In his 2016 memoir, Vance described his complex family structure, referring to having as many as a dozen step-siblings, though he emphasized the difficulty in quantifying the total number.

When JD was young, his parents divorced, and his mother remarried a man named Bob Hamel. However, his biological father, Bowman, stopped recognizing him as his son. “Dad gave me up for adoption when I was 6. After the adoption, he became kind of a phantom for the next six years,” Vance wrote in Hillbilly Elegy. His mother legally changed his name to James David Hamel, in part to sever ties with his biological father. Despite their estrangement, JD later reconnected with his father in his teenage years before Bowman passed away in 2023.

Vance’s childhood was marked by his mother’s struggles with substance abuse, including prescription medication and heroin addiction. This troubled period culminated in a dangerous incident when Vance was 12, during which his mother threatened to crash her car with both of them inside. Police intervened, and JD went to live with his maternal grandparents, Bonnie and James Vance, whom he lovingly referred to as “Mamaw” and “Papaw.” In 2013, he legally adopted their last name, becoming JD Vance.

Today, Vance’s mother, Beverly, is 10 years sober and attended his speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention.

Education, Military Service, and Early Career

Vance graduated from Middletown High School in 2003 before enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps. In his memoir, he explained that he joined the military partly because he wasn’t prepared for adulthood, lacking basic life skills such as balancing a checkbook and completing financial aid forms for college. Enlisting as a combat correspondent, or military journalist, Vance served from 2003 to 2007, including a six-month deployment to Iraq beginning in late 2005. His service earned him a Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal and a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.

Following his military service, Vance pursued higher education at Ohio State University, where he graduated in 2009 with degrees in political science and philosophy. He then transitioned to Yale Law School, although he faced challenges in fitting into the academic environment. A fellow Yale student told The Washington Post that Vance formed a close-knit group of politically moderate or conservative friends, with whom he spent time watching movies, playing fantasy football, and engaging in darts at a local bar. Despite these efforts, Vance described himself as feeling like a “cultural alien.”

Vance completed his law degree in 2013 and embarked on his professional career. After Yale, he served as a clerk for U.S. District Judge David Bunning and later worked at the prestigious Sidley Austin LLP law firm. However, his legal career was short-lived.

In 2016, Vance transitioned into venture capital, joining Mithril Capital, a firm co-founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, in San Francisco. Three years later, he co-founded Narya Capital, a venture capital firm based in Cincinnati. That same year, Vance established Our Ohio Renewal, a social welfare organization focused on addressing addiction, education issues, and other social challenges in the state. However, the organization ceased operations within two years.

Hillbilly Elegy: Book and Movie

In June 2016, Vance released Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, an autobiographical account of his tumultuous upbringing and his reflections on the economic and social decline in the Appalachian region. In the book, Vance notes that his story is not extraordinary, but rather an example of someone achieving something “quite ordinary” despite the challenges of growing up in such an environment.

Hillbilly Elegy sparked controversy for its portrayal of Appalachia, particularly Vance’s assertion that the region’s economic struggles were partially due to a cultural laziness. Nonetheless, the book sold over 3 million copies by July 2024 and became a significant factor in Vance’s rise as a political commentator, particularly on issues affecting rural America.

The book was adapted into a film directed by Ron Howard, released in November 2020, featuring Amy Adams as Beverly Vance and Glenn Close as Mamaw Vance. Although the film received negative reviews, with The Independent’s Clarisse Loughrey describing it as “a sickeningly irresponsible parade of death and despair,” Close’s performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.

The release of the film, combined with the announcement of Vance’s 2024 vice presidential campaign, led to a surge in interest in Hillbilly Elegy. The book’s print version sold over 650,000 copies within just 10 days, while the movie attracted nearly 5 million views on Netflix within its first week.

Political Career: U.S. Senator and Vice President-Elect

In 2018, J.D. Vance began considering a run for public office. Initially, he explored a bid for Ohio’s U.S. Senate seat against incumbent Sherrod Brown, but ultimately chose not to pursue it. However, his growing political aspirations were evident.

Becoming U.S. Senator for Ohio

In 2021, Vance entered the race for Ohio’s Senate seat following the announcement that Republican Senator Rob Portman would not seek re-election. Vance secured the GOP nomination in May 2022, triumphing in a crowded field with over 32 percent of the vote. During the November general election, Vance’s performance was seen as underwhelming compared to other Republicans, especially Governor Mike DeWine, but he still won the seat with a comfortable six-point margin over Democratic challenger Tim Ryan.

Vance was sworn in as U.S. Senator on January 3, 2023, becoming the first Ohio senator without prior political experience since astronaut John Glenn in 1974. In his inaugural address, Vance pledged to represent the working- and middle-class Ohioans who, he argued, had been neglected by years of ineffective leadership.

Since taking office, Vance has been active in the Senate, speaking 45 times on the Senate floor and sponsoring 57 bills, though none have yet passed. He serves on three key Senate Committees: Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs; Commerce, Science and Transportation; and the Special Committee on Aging.

2024 Vice Presidential Nominee and Winner

Once a vocal critic of Donald Trump, Vance had called him “cultural heroin” in 2016 and likened him to Adolf Hitler. However, over time, Vance’s position shifted, and he became one of Trump’s strongest allies, aligning with him on issues such as states’ rights on abortion and the imposition of tariffs. His support for Trump culminated in an endorsement for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, which proved to be a significant boost to his political standing.

In July 2024, Trump selected Vance as his running mate for the vice presidency on the Republican ticket. Vance formally accepted the nomination at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he made a speech aimed at Rust Belt voters in key battleground states like Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. “Never in my wildest imagination could I have believed that I’d be standing here tonight,” Vance remarked.

Despite his newfound prominence, Vance’s selection as vice presidential nominee drew some criticism. Polls revealed he was the first non-incumbent vice presidential candidate since 1980 to have a net-negative favorability rating following his party’s convention. Vance also faced backlash for comments made in 2021, where he referred to members of the Democratic Party as “childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives” and suggested higher taxes for Americans without children.

Nonetheless, Vance remained a key campaign figure in the tight race against the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz. Trump ultimately triumphed in every battleground state, securing a decisive electoral victory and making Vance the vice president-elect.

Family and Personal Life

During his time at Yale Law School, JD Vance met Usha Chilukuri, a fellow student originally from California and raised by Indian immigrants. Their connection was sparked by a class assignment, and Vance later admitted that he “fell hard” for Usha. In his memoir Hillbilly Elegy, he reflected on how her presence made him feel at home in an environment that often felt foreign to him.

Vance and Chilukuri graduated in 2013, marrying the following year. They have three children: sons Ewan and Vivek, and a daughter, Mirabel.

Usha, who is two years younger than JD, has had a distinguished legal career. She served as a clerk for Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh when he was an appeals court judge. She later worked as a trial lawyer for the prestigious Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP law firm but stepped away from her career after Vance was selected as the vice presidential nominee.

Despite facing attacks from white supremacists due to Usha’s Indian heritage, Vance has expressed deep admiration for her, saying, “I love her because she’s who she is. She’s such a good mom. She’s such a brilliant lawyer, and I’m so proud of her.” He made these remarks during an interview with Megyn Kelly in July 2024.

Net Worth

As of August 2024, JD Vance’s net worth is estimated to be around $5 million according to Celebrity Net Worth. However, Forbes reports his asset portfolio could be as high as $10 million. Financial disclosures reveal that Vance earned over $800,000 in royalties from HarperCollins for Hillbilly Elegy during 2020 and 2021.