The origins of 'JD' Vance: Donald Trump's VP pick has a unique history of name changes

MIDDLETOWN, OHIO: Ohio Senator JD Vance, recently announced as former president Donald Trump's vice-presidential running mate for the 2024 election, has a rather unique naming history that almost mirrors his personal journey.

Born James Donald Bowman in Middletown, Ohio, Vance's early life was marked by a series of difficult adaptations.

Early life and name changes

JD Vance’s parents divorced when he was young, leading to a change in his middle name from Donald, after his father, to David. This was the beginning of several name changes he would undergo. During his teenage years, Vance adopted his stepfather's surname, becoming James Hamel. This name is reflected in his 2003 senior yearbook at Middletown High School.

As an adult, Vance made another change to honor his maternal grandparents. Upon marrying his wife, Usha, in 2014, he legally adopted their surname, becoming James Vance. Despite these changes, he has always preferred to go by "JD," a choice he maintains in his official US Senate biography, which spells his first name as JD.

Vance's rise to prominence is closely linked to his 2016 memoir, 'Hillbilly Elegy', which offers a raw and personal account of his upbringing in a struggling Rust Belt town. The memoir was adapted into a Netflix film directed by Ron Howard in 2020.

The bestselling book, which lists him as JD Vance, was a huge factor in Trump’s recent announcement of Vance as his running mate, per USA Today.

At the GOP convention, Vance accepted the party’s nomination for vice president. In his speech, he praised Trump: “For the last eight years, President Trump has given everything he has to fight for his country. He didn’t need politics but the country needed him.”

Vance also spoke about his humble beginnings in Ohio, crediting his “tough-as-nails” grandmother for his success. He criticized President Biden’s long political career, arguing that Biden's policies have made “America weaker and poorer.”

Financial success and personal life

Forbes recently estimated JD Vance’s net worth at around $10 million, largely due to the success of 'Hillbilly Elegy', which sold millions of copies. His financial portfolio includes about $4 million in real estate holdings, with three houses in Washington, DC, Cincinnati, and Alexandria, Virginia.

Vance's financial journey is notable for his lack of student debt, thanks to his service in the Marines and financial aid at Ohio State University and Yale Law School. Currently, the only debt he and his wife Usha owe is an estimated $480,000 on their Washington, D.C. home, purchased for $590,000 in 2014 and now worth about $850,000.

JD met Usha when they were law classmates at Yale. Usha, raised by Indian immigrants in San Diego, attended the University of San Diego before Yale Law School and also earned a Gates Cambridge scholarship to study at the University of Cambridge. After obtaining their law degrees, the couple moved to Cincinnati to clerk for a year and married shortly thereafter.

Usha’s career includes clerking for then-circuit court judge (now Supreme Court Justice) Brett Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts. She worked as a trial lawyer in California and DC at the law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson until Vance’s announcement as Trump’s running mate.

In 2014, Usha was registered as a Democrat, but records indicate she has been a registered Republican since 2022. The couple has three children: Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel.

Political and financial backing

JD Vance’s primary backer is GOP donor and Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, who contributed approximately $15 million to Vance’s Senate campaign—the largest amount ever donated to support a single Senate candidate.

Thiel and Vance have a long-standing relationship, beginning from Vance’s time in venture capital. Inspired by Thiel while still a law student, Vance eventually joined Thiel’s Mithril Capital in 2015, describing Thiel as a “pretty good mentor.”

After leaving Mithril, Vance founded his venture capital firm in 2019 with backing from Thiel and other billionaire investors. When Vance transitioned to politics, Thiel was instrumental beyond financial support, reportedly facilitating a reconciliation between Vance and Trump at Mar-A-Lago.

Entrepreneur David Sacks also donated $1 million to a PAC supporting Vance’s Senate run and advocated for Trump to select Vance as his running mate, according to Forbes.