Marco Rubio denies exit plans after report puts him on resignation watch over 2028 presidential bid

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has dismissed reports that he is planning to leave President Donald Trump's administration amid speculation that he could leave the cabinet to enter the 2028 presidential race.

In an interview with The New York Times on Thursday, Rubio said he intended to remain in the administration until the end of Trump's term.

"It has always been my plan" to work for Trump until the end of his term, he said.

Responding to reports that he was considering stepping down, Rubio added: "I don't know where these things come from, to be honest with you."

He also declined to discuss his political ambitions for 2028, saying: "I literally will not talk about 2028 anymore."

The State Department also rejected the reports. Dylan Johnson, Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs, described a Bloomberg News report about Rubio weighing his exit as "totally made up".

He also dismissed The Independent's report about Rubio preparing a 2028 presidential bid as "completely baseless fake news".

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Why is Rubio on resignation watch?

Speculation about Rubio's future has intensified following the Republicans' rout in Tuesday's midterm elections, in which Democrats won control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The Independent reported that Rubio was on resignation watch on both sides of the Atlantic, with expectations that he could quit his senior positions to launch a bid for the Republican presidential nomination in November 2028.

According to the report, senior Republican sources in the US and senior figures in the UK government believed Rubio could leave the administration even before the midterm results.

Rubio, who also serves as Trump's national security adviser, is considered a potential Republican contender for 2028, with Vice President JD Vance seen as another possible candidate.

Days before the midterm elections, Rubio made an unusual appearance alongside Trump at a campaign rally, briefly addressing the cheering crowd from the podium.

He has previously said he would support Vance if the vice president decided to run for president.