Former President Donald Trump shared a photograph of the newborn son of Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance, who welcomed their fourth child over the weekend. Trump posted the image on Monday, offering congratulations to the Vance family.
The Vance family announced the birth of their son, Alec Neel Vance, on Sunday. This marks the first time in 156 years that a sitting vice president has had a child while in office. The last incumbent Second Family to welcome a newborn was Schuyler Colfax, Vice President under Ulysses S. Grant, and his wife Ellen, who had a son in 1870.
"Usha and the baby are happy and healthy, and our kids are overjoyed to meet their little brother," Vance wrote on the social platform X. He also expressed gratitude to the "incredible military doctors and staff members of Walter Reed Medical Center and the White House Medical Unit" for their care.
Usha Vance, 40, and JD Vance, 41, had announced they were expecting their fourth child in January. Vance wrote in his memoir "Communion" that the couple had initially decided against having more children due to the pressures of public life. However, he noted that the assassination of a close friend, Charlie Kirk, in the fall influenced Usha's perspective.
"Something changed for Usha, and not long after we buried my friend, she became pregnant with our fourth child, a boy. One life was stolen from us, but another was given," Vance wrote. Usha Vance stated that while Erika Kirk's regret about not having more children with her late husband was influential, it was not the sole reason for their decision.
The Vances met at Yale Law School, graduating in 2013, and married a year later. Their family includes children Ewan, nine, Vivek, and Mirabel. Alec joins Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel as the Vance's fourth child.
This birth contributes to a recent increase in births within the administration, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt having her second child in May and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller's wife Katie also recently delivering their fourth child.