Vance, Luna named as rising stars in Time’s new ‘100 Next’ list

GOP firebrands Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.) and Sen. JD Vance (Ohio) made Time magazine’s 2023 “TIME100 Next” list released Wednesday.

The magazine credited Luna with leading the effort to censure Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who was a leading voice in the impeachments of former President Trump, and noted Vance’s willingness to cross the aisle on certain issues, such as sponsoring a bipartisan railway safety bill in the wake of a disastrous train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. 

The Time write-up on Luna says she is “on a mission to disrupt the governing class.”

“Some Republicans who initially opposed the [censure of Schiff] fell in line after Luna orchestrated a social media backlash against them,” according to the write-up. “It was a moment Luna was made for after running Hispanic outreach for the pro-Trump youth group Turning Point USA, where she mastered the art of provocative internet virality.”

Both lawmakers are under the age of 40 and were elected in the last year.

“Vance’s backers, including right-wing billionaire Peter Thiel, see the 39-year-old Senator as part of a rising cohort of ‘new right’ leaders,” according to the Time write-up. “He has proved willing to take positions that go against the GOP grain, like championing new rail-safety regulations in the aftermath of the East Palestine derailment and opposing U.S. military aid to Ukraine.”

Other figures on the “Next” list include Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt (R), Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young (D), Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan and Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr (D).