JD and Usha Vance welcome a baby boy, the first child born to a sitting VP in more than 150 years
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President J.D. Vance and his wife, the second lady Usha VanceOn Sunday, he announced the birth of his fourth child, the first for a vice president in more than 150 years in office.
Alec Neel Vance, born Sunday, joins their older sibling Ewan, 9; Vivek, 6; and Mirabel, 4.
Vance announced his birth on social media with a statement signed by himself and his wife.
“We are excited to announce that our son, Alec Neel Vance, was born this morning. Usha and the baby are happy and healthy, and our children are delighted to meet their little brother,” the statement said.
They thanked doctors and staff at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and the White House medical team.
The Republican vice president’s growing family is in keeping with his passionate advocacy for Americans. having more children. He also stated that the killing of the conservative activist in 2025 was also suggested. Charlie KirkShe also took into account her decision to have another child with her friend.
Vance, a former U.S. Marine, has repeatedly expressed concerns. Birth rates are falling in America He began his political career in 2021 with a bid for a U.S. Senate seat from Ohio. As vice president, he said “I want more babies in the United States of America” at the 2025 March for Life anti-abortion rally in Washington.
The 41-year-old vice president is accompanied by 40-year-old Usha Vance and her children on his foreign trips; Children often board Air Force Two for night flights in their pajamas.
Usha Vance, the daughter of immigrants from India, had already attracted public attention because of her husband. pregnancy, It was announced in JanuaryThis has spurred interest because it is rare for those serving in the United States’ highest public offices to contribute to their families while serving.
The last time a sitting vice president became a new father was in the 1800s.
Schuyler Colfax and his second wife, Ellen Wade, had a son named Schuyler Colfax III in 1870, when Colfax was serving as vice president, according to the White House Historical Association. Decades earlier, John C. Calhoun and his wife, Floride Bonneau, had a son named William in 1829, when Calhoun was vice president, the association said.
The newest addition to Vance’s family was part of a recent mini-baby boom among senior members of President Donald Trump’s administration. Katie Miller, wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, recently gave birth to the couple’s fourth child, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt gave birth to her second child with husband Nicholas Riccio in May.
Usha Vance recently came under scrutiny after The New York Times’ fashion critic pointed out the belly-hugging, coral-colored maternity dress she wore during the Father’s Day episode of “Storytime with the Second Lady,” a video podcast she started during her pregnancy.
The Times wrote that Vance, Miller, and Leavitt’s attention to their pregnancies presented “an idealized image of femininity that gave full form to the pronatalist movement,” which encouraged couples to have as many children as possible to counteract declining birth rates.
The second woman responded on social media: “Now that we know the political significance of my $8.75 coral maternity dress from Old Navy, I can’t wait to hear what the New York Times has to say about my elastic waistband pants and compression socks! In the meantime, enjoy my pregnancy fashion (or lack thereof) and a good story with your kids on Storytime with the Second Lady.” She then shared the bill for the dress, and her husband applauded her frugality.
“Bought a $50 dress for $8.75. America: meet the next director of the federal budget!” the vice president wrote on social media.
J.D. Vance said Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, said she wished she had more than two children with her husband before he was assassinated in Utah last September, and that she and the second lady decided to expand their family. Former attorney Usha Vance, who once clerked for Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, partly agrees.
“What (Erika) said about her own family was very powerful and certainly very moving for both of us. I think I was already starting to open my mind to that possibility,” Usha Vance said in a joint interview with her husband for “CBS Sunday Morning” that aired in June. said Usha Vance. “I wouldn’t say that was the deciding factor for me by any means. But it came in the middle of a conversation we were already having.”
___
You can follow AP’s news about Vice President JD Vance at: https://apnews.com/hub/jd-vance.
