Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he will not pursue the presidency in 2028 if Vice President JD Vance enters the Republican primary, signaling early unity among potential successors to President Donald Trump.

"If J.D. Vance runs for president, he's going to be our nominee, and I'll be one of the first people to support him," Rubio told author Chris Whipple in a "Vanity Fair" interview published Tuesday.

Rubio, 54, and Vance, 41, are widely viewed as leading GOP presidential candidates when Trump's second term ends. Presidents are constitutionally limited to two terms under the 22nd Amendment.

Trump this year publicly praised Vance and Rubio and floated the idea of them running together on a future Republican ticket, without specifying who would lead.

"We have J.D., obviously — the vice president is great," Trump said while traveling in Asia in October. "Marco's great. I'm not sure if anybody would run against those two. I think if they formed a group, it would be unstoppable."

Although Trump has sometimes joked about finding a way to serve beyond two terms, senior aides have downplayed it. White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles told Whipple that Trump has no intention of violating the Constitution, adding that "he sure is having fun with it."

Rubio made his remarks as part of a broader profile of Wiles, a longtime Trump ally and fellow Floridian. In the piece, Wiles commented on Vance's evolution from an early Trump critic to one of his strongest supporters, describing the shift as "sort of political."

Whipple, who has written extensively about presidential administrations, is the author of "The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency."

After the article's publication, Wiles blasted the profile on X, calling it "a disingenuously framed hit piece on me and the finest President, White House staff, and Cabinet in history."

"Significant context was disregarded and much of what I, and others, said about the team and the President was left out of the story," Wiles wrote. "I assume, after reading it, that this was done to paint an overwhelmingly chaotic and negative narrative about the President and our team."

She added: "None of this will stop our relentless pursuit of Making America Great Again!"

• Yale Poll: Vance Heavy Favorite for 2028 GOP Nod
• Vance Calls Rubio His 'Best Friend'