J.D. Vance Declares That He and Trump Can Win the 'Normal Gay Guy Vote'

The bold comment, made on Joe Rogan's podcast on Oct. 31, comes after Vance spent his first two years as a senator targeting LGBTQ+ rights

Stephen Maturen/Getty Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) speaks with media gathered outside the Park Diner on July 28, 2024 in St Cloud, Minnesota. Vance joined U.S. Republican Presidential nominee former President Donald Trump for a campaign rally last night in Minnesota.

Stephen Maturen/Getty

Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) speaks with media gathered outside the Park Diner on July 28, 2024 in St Cloud, Minnesota. Vance joined U.S. Republican Presidential nominee former President Donald Trump for a campaign rally last night in Minnesota.

J.D. Vance, who has opposed same-sex marriage, believes that he and Donald Trump could win the "normal gay guy vote" in next week's presidential election.

"I wouldn't be surprised if me and Trump won just the normal gay guy vote," the Republican vice presidential nominee told podcaster Joe Rogan on Thursday, Oct. 31. "They just want to be left the hell alone and now you have all this crazy stuff on top of it."

Related: J.D. Vance Isn't the Bridge-Building VP That Moderates Wanted: What He's Said About Women, Voting and Project 2025

Vance, 40, has a history of opposing LGBTQ+ rights during his short political career and received a score of 0 on the Human Rights Campaign's congressional scorecard.

During his Senate campaign in July 2022, Vance told Mission America that he would oppose the Respect for Marriage Act, which would enshrine federal marriage protections for same-sex and interracial marriages, NBC News reported. The bill ultimately passed and became law before Vance was sworn in January 2023.

Related: J.D. Vance Says He Won’t Apologize to Childless Women over ‘Cat Ladies’ Comment But Has ‘Nothing Against Cats’

David Paul Morris/getty Donald Trump and J.D. Vance at the Republican National Convention on July 15, 2024

David Paul Morris/getty

Donald Trump and J.D. Vance at the Republican National Convention on July 15, 2024

The Ohio native has also faced criticism for his comments on transgender rights, according to CBS News. In addition to a bill that would bar the State Department from allowing the gender marker "X" on passports, he sponsored legislation that would ban access to gender-affirming care for minors.

Vance touched on his anti-LGBTQ+ stances during his three-hour conversation with Rogan, saying that transgender identities are a “cult and a religion, but with one big difference," per The Daily Beast. Vance then reportedly said the difference is that “woke stuff” doesn’t have “forgiveness and redemption.”

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The senator also seemed to explain why he was against transgender women playing in sports but felt Americans "don’t really care who you sleep with."

“They’re pretty open-minded about most lifestyle choices," he said. "But when you talk about having a biological male compete with their teenage girl, right, in competitive sports, Americans are saying, no, no, no, no. Yeah. This is crazy. You’re causing injury to my kids. We have to stop this.”