Attendees applaud during Turning Point USA's AmericaFest 2025, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)2025-12-21T13:18:40Z PHOENIX (AP) The next presidential election is three years away, but Turning Point USA already knows it wants Vice President JD Vance as the Republican nominee.Erika Kirk, leader of the powerful conservative youth organization, endorsed him on opening night of its annual AmericaFest convention, drawing cheers from the crowd. But the four-day gathering revealed more peril than promise for Vance or any other potential successor to President Donald Trump, and the tensions on display foreshadow the treacherous waters that they will need to navigate in the coming years. The Make America Great Again movement is fracturing as Republicans begin considering a future without Trump, and there is no clear path to holding his coalition together as different factions jockey for influence. Who gets to run it after? asked commentator Tucker Carlson in his speech at the conference. Who gets the machinery when the president exits the scene?Vance, who has not said whether he will run for president, is Turning Points closing speaker Sunday, appearing at the end of a lineup that includes U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Donald Trump Jr. Turning Point backs Vance for presidentErika Kirk, who took over as Turning Points leader when her husband, Charlie Kirk, was assassinated, said Thursday that the group wanted Vance elected for 48 in the most resounding way possible. The next president will be the 48th in U.S. history.Turning Point is a major force on the right, with a nationwide volunteer network that can be especially helpful in early primary states, when candidates rely on grassroots energy to build momentum. The endorsement carried at least a little bit of weight for 20 year-old Kiara Wagner, who traveled from Toms River, New Jersey, for the conference. If someone like Erika can support JD Vance, I can too, Wagner said.Vance was close with Charlie Kirk. After Kirks assassination on a college campus in Utah, the vice president flew out on Air Force Two to collect Kirks remains and bring them home to Arizona. The vice president helped uniformed service members carry the casket to the plane. A post-Trump Republican Party?The Republican Partys identity has been intertwined with Trump for a decade. Now that he is constitutionally ineligible to run for reelection, the party is starting to ponder a future without him at the helm.So far, it looks like settling that question will require a lot of fighting among conservatives. Turning Point featured arguments about antisemitism, Israel and environmental regulations, not to mention rivalries between leading commentators. Carlson said the idea of a Republican civil war was totally fake.There are people who are mad at JD Vance, and theyre stirring up a lot of this in order to make sure he doesnt get the nomination, he said. Carlson describe Vance as the one person who subscribes to the core idea of the Trump coalition, which Carlson said was America first.Vance appeared to have the edge as far as Turning Point attendees are concerned. It has to be JD Vance because he has been so awesome when it comes to literally any question, said Tomas Morales, a videographer from Los Angeles. He said theres no other choice. Trump has not chosen a successor, though he has spoken highly of both Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, even suggesting they could form a future Republican ticket. Rubio has said he would support Vance. Asked in August whether Vance was the heir apparent, Trump said most likely.Its too early, obviously, to talk about it, but certainly hes doing a great job, and he would be probably favorite at this point, he said. Any talk of future campaigns is complicated by Trumps occasional musings about seeking a third term. Im not allowed to run, he told reporters during a trip to Asia in October. Its too bad. JONATHAN J. COOPER Cooper is a national politics reporter based in Phoenix. He previously covered news and politics in Arizona, California and Oregon. mailto SEJAL GOVINDARAO Govindarao covers Arizona government and politics for The Associated Press, with a focus on women in state government. She is based in Phoenix. twitter mailto