JD Vance Isn't Ready To Give Up On Being Onstage With Erika Kirk & The Shade Is Already Rolling In

It raised some eyebrows when Erika Kirk, the new CEO of Turning Point USA, canceled her appearance alongside Vice President JD Vance on April 14, 2026. Though Kirk voiced some vague concerns about her safety as a reason for backing out, many were unwilling to buy the excuse, especially since Vance still chose to attend. One could argue that if the vice president's security felt it was safe enough for him to attend, then Kirk could have joined him. Although, considering the messy rumors that Kirk and Vance have generated from being onstage together, perhaps she wanted to keep her distance — until April 30, that is.

On April 22, the team behind Turning Point USA announced on X, formerly Twitter, that the dynamic duo have decided to team up once again. "Join Vice President JD Vance and Erika Kirk for an unforgettable night as we bring the conversation straight to Iowa State University," they wrote. Of course, it wasn't long before people began to joke about the event.

Is she going to bail on him again? pic.twitter.com/PrsD5SLlBA

— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) April 22, 2026

Considering Vance was close friends with the late Charlie Kirk (and presumably his wife), it makes sense that he would want to continue to collaborate with Erika. However, when taking into account all the rumors that have followed Erika since Charlie's passing, her wishy-washy behavior only has more people questioning her every move. When she insisted that safety measures were the reason for her April 14 cancellation, many took to the internet to decry what they saw as a flimsy excuse. It seems that, once again, commenters were quick to point out a common theme when it comes to Erika and Vance teaming up.

When controversial conservative podcaster Candace Owens took to X to allege that Erika Kirk's April 14 pullout was "because of bad ticket sales," there was a surprising amount of agreement online. With the announcement that Kirk will once again try to take the stage with JD Vance in Iowa, the sentiment seemed to linger. "Let's see how ticket sales go," wrote one X user. "Depends on ticket sales," quipped another. The post from TPUSA Students did notably indicate that tickets were free, which might give some weight to the idea that Kirk wants bums in seats if she's to show up. That way, she'd avoid the humiliation Vance suffered when he headlined the April 14 event at a stadium that was 75% empty.

Turning Point USA seems to have misestimated crowd size for Vance. Akins Ford Arena less than 25% filled for the vice president. pic.twitter.com/K2SnkmuATh

— Jake Traylor (@jake__traylor) April 14, 2026

However, considering the awkward hug heard round the world between Kirk and Vance, others seemed to suggest that something else was going on behind the scenes. "Oh, I hate public lovers' quarrels," one person commented, suggesting that perhaps it wasn't just ticket sales that had Kirk backing out of the prior event. "They're smashin'," wrote another, suggesting that the event in Iowa might be Vance's desperate attempt to get with Kirk.

There just might be some lingering smoke to the fiery affair gossip; after all, there's the rumor that Vance might have used his vice presidential privilege to escort Kirk to a previous outing. Even though he's the VP, Vance has been doing an awful lot of travel while wife Usha Vance is at home, pregnant with their fourth child. Speaking of which, with Usha and JD possibly naming their baby after Charlie Kirk, Vance's dogged determination to be by Erika's side, onstage or otherwise, is certainly interesting.