Love him or hate him, outspoken sports media personality Stephen A. Smith doesn’t shy away from talking about politics. While he claims to be an independent, he tends to favor Democrats, though he often shows that he has more common sense than most of them because he’s able to criticize them and appreciate some of the good things Donald Trump does. He also often criticizes the media’s anti-Trump bias.
Over the last couple of years, he’s become close friends with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, and they often appear on each other’s various shows. This week, Smith appeared on Hannity’s podcast, Hang Out with Sean Hannity, and he had some interesting things to say.
First, while he has joked about running for president in 2028, he shut down any rumors about it becoming a reality. “Let me put the presidential aspirations to bed,” he told Hannity. “If I have to give up my money, it’s not happening.”
So, if he’s not running himself, whom would Smith vote for? Hannity asked him to name three people, and surprisingly, he mentioned two Democrats and a Republican: Josh Shapiro, the governor of Pennsylvania; Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland; and… Marco Rubio, our dear secretary of State.
“What is it about Marco?” Hannity asked.
“He’s an adult in the room,” Smith said. “There’s no questioning his qualifications for the job.”
“If it’s Marco and anyone other than Wes or Josh, you’d vote for Marco over the Democrat?” Hannity asked.
“Yes,” Smith said.
Hannity asked if he’d vote for Rubio over big names like Kamala Harris or Gavin Newsom. Smith said “yes” every single time.
“Yes. I’d vote for Marco Rubio over anybody that’s out there right now other than Wes Moore or Josh Shapiro,” he concluded.
Here’s the video if you’d like to watch this exchange for yourself:
HANNITY: “Name three people in your head that you’d vote for for president.”
STEPHEN A. SMITH: “You won’t like it.”
HANNITY: “I don’t care.”
SMITH: “I’d vote for Wes Moore. I’d vote for Josh Shapiro. I’d vote for Marco Rubio.”
HANNITY: “What is it about Marco?”
SMITH: “He’s… pic.twitter.com/0fbszsLBWk
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) March 10, 2026
I know you’re probably thinking, who cares what Smith says? I agree, but I think it’s something that should make us stop and think. As I mentioned yesterday when I wrote about how Trump’s pals at Mar-a-Lago wanted Rubio to be the the nominee for 2028, Rubio has broad appeal. He’s been winning over the MAGA base. I can’t tell you how much Hispanic voters adore him — I’m in contact with a lot of folks originally from Latin American countries each week, and they love, love, love Rubio. The GOP desperately needs to maintain that Hispanic vote if it wants a successful future. He also appeals to moderates and some independents, like Smith. And he’s inching up in the polls.
Related: Vance Vs. Rubio? Trump’s Pals Have a Preference.
All of that said, as Kruiser mentioned in the Morning Briefing on Tuesday morning, “It’s also difficult to imagine a scenario where Vance isn’t the nominee in 2028. As we always have to say when speculating, however, a lot can change between now and then.”
My personal opinion is that we should get through 2026 first before we start worrying about 2028, and I don’t really love doing these “who will it be” articles — even though I’ve written two in the past 24 hours — but I also know many of our readers love the chatter, so I suspect we’ll see more of them in the months to come.
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