Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul says he is weighing a run for president in 2028. 

Paul told CBS News the idea is a 50-50 proposition right now. “We’re thinking about it, and I would say 50-50,” he said. He added that he will make a final decision after the November midterm elections. 

Over the weekend, Vice President JD Vance won the straw poll for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination at the Conservative Political Action Conference. The event took place in Grapevine, Texas, where Vance captured 53 percent of the vote. Secretary of State Marco Rubio finished second with 35 percent. Several other names, including Paul, each picked up 1 percent.

POLL: Who would you vote for in a potential GOP presidential primary in 2028?

— Steve Gruber (@stevegrubershow) March 30, 2026

National polling shows Vance maintaining a strong lead in the early stages of the 2028 race. The Real Clear Politics average of national polls from Jan. 9 through March 20 shows Vance at 45 percent. Donald Trump Jr. sits at 16.3 percent, Marco Rubio at 12.3 percent, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 7.3 percent.

Recent individual surveys reinforce Vance’s position while showing some movement for Rubio. An Emerson College poll conducted in February showed Vance with 52 percent support among likely Republican primary voters and Rubio at 20 percent.

A more recent Daily Mail/JL Partners survey from March 18-20 had Vance at 50 percent and Rubio at 17 percent, with Rubio gaining three points from the prior survey. In a head-to-head matchup in that poll, Vance led Rubio 62 percent to 27 percent. 

This will not be Paul’s first bid for the White House. He launched his 2016 campaign on April 7, 2015, at the Galt House in Louisville, Kentucky, positioning himself as a defender of limited government, fiscal restraint, and a less interventionist foreign policy.

Paul finished fifth in the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1, 2016, with 4.5 percent of the vote. Two days later, on Feb. 3, he suspended his campaign. He cited a lack of money and momentum and turned his attention back to his Senate re-election race. 

Paul has served in the Senate since 2011. He is the son of former Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who twice sought the Republican presidential nomination on similar themes. Over the years, the younger Paul has broken with some in his party on spending bills, foreign aid, and military actions abroad. 

With more than two years until the 2028 primaries, the Republican field remains wide open. Vance has established himself as the consistent front-runner in both straw polls and national surveys. Rubio has shown signs of gaining support in recent polling and at the CPAC conference.

Paul has not ruled out another bid for the White House. He says he will wait to see the outcome of the upcoming midterms before making his choice.