Usha Vance has addressed the rumors surrounding her marriage after being seen without her wedding ring.
Usha is the spouse of JD Vance, the current Vice President of the United States. The couple married in 2014 and have three children together.
The Vances maintained a friendship with Charlie Kirk and have been pivotal in supporting his wife Erika after his assassination, with Usha occasionally being observed holding Erika’s hand.
JD has also shown support, recently attending a Turning Point USA event at Erika’s invitation.
During her introduction of JD, Erika drew parallels between the vice president and her late husband.
She remarked: “No one will ever replace my husband. But I do see some similarities of my husband in JD — in Vice President JD Vance. I do. And that’s why I am so blessed to be able to introduce him tonight.”
JD then took the stage, sharing an embrace with Erika that many considered ‘inappropriate’ when Erika placed her hand on the back of JD’s head. This moment quickly gained online attention.
One Twitter user commented on the oddity: “I have never wanted to touch any man’s hair during a hug other than my husband’s. This is weird.”
Another questioned: “Why would she touch the VP of the United States hair/head in an embrace?”
Additionally, a body language expert commented on the embrace’s intimacy. Traci Brown told the Huff Post about Erika’s gesture: “That’s a super-intimate move, but beyond that, it controls his attention — so, she’s controlling what he’s looking at.”
Following the contentious embrace, Usha was seen without her wedding ring. On Wednesday (November 19), she visited Camp Lejeune, a military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina, alongside First Lady Melania Trump.
Usha attended the event in a long burgundy, turtle-neck dress and, while she wore earrings, her wedding band was notably absent, fueling rumors about her and JD’s marriage.
A representative for the 39-year-old denied the speculation in a statement to PEOPLE, saying that Usha is “a mother of three young children, who does a lot of dishes, gives lots of baths, and forgets her ring sometimes.”
Usha and JD have three children: Ewan, eight, Vivek, five, and their three-year-old daughter Mirabel.
UNILAD has reached out to Usha’s representative for further comment.