Former Trump administration adviser Steve Bannon is reportedly laying the groundwork for a 2028 presidential campaign, though he adamantly denies it.
Bannon, a key architect of Trump’s MAGA movement, has expressed interest in setting up a PAC that could spend money in the midterms and has considered political staffing decisions, Axios reports, citing two sources familiar with Bannon’s thinking.
The campaign is not meant to mount a serious run; instead, it is an attempt to steer the GOP debate towards Trump’s signature “America First” priorities, according to the report.
"The Bannon campaign will merge the foreign policy of Rand Paul with the tax policy of Elizabeth Warren,” former congressman and Bannon podcast guest Matt Gaetz told the outlet.
Bannon has consistently denied he’s running, telling Axios its report about a 2028 run was “bulls***.”
"We don't have a country if we don't get every ounce of fight and energy from President Trump — you can drive a Mack Truck through the 22nd Amendment — and that's exactly what I intend to do in order to save our country," Bannon told Axios of the Constitution’s two-term presidential term limit.
The Independent has contacted Bannon for comment.
Bannon has said there is a plan in place for Trump to get around this seemingly straightforward provision and serve a third term, though Trump has acknowledged he’s not allowed to run again.
Throughout 2025, Bannon faced headlines about him pondering a run, though he had brushed off earlier reports as “absurd” or told reporters “Trump 2028” when asked about the alleged campaign effort.
Bannon served a brief federal prison sentence in 2024 for contempt of Congress after defying a subpoena in the January 6 investigation.
Polling suggests Bannon would have a tough road ahead if he did decide to run.
Bannon has a one percent chance of becoming the GOP nominee, according to the betting site Polymarket, well behind the frontrunner, Vice President JD Vance, who has a 52 percent rating.
An early 2025 straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference put Bannon behind Vance as well.
Aggregators of traditional political polling also suggest the vice president is the likely heir to the MAGA movement.
Race to the WH puts Vance well ahead of the nearest competitor at nearly 45 percent, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio in second at 10.7 percent and Donald Trump Jr. rounding out the top three at 9.4 percent.
The Real Clear Polling average for the 2028 nominee shows a similar breakdown, with Vance on top, followed distantly by Trump Jr. and Rubio.
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