Usha Vance Vs. The Trump Women: How Their Styles Compare

Usha Vance is not your typical political spouse. In fact, she isn't your typical anything. Usha graduated from Yale University Law School after working as the managing editor of the Yale Journal of Law & Technology and the executive development editor of the Yale Law Journal. She clerked for one sitting Supreme Court justice as well as a future one — working with John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh, respectively. She also became a Gates Cambridge scholar, earning her MPhil from the University of Cambridge in England and eventually joining the board of the Gates Cambridge Alumni Association. 

But when she took the stage at the 2024 Republican National Convention, it was not because her impressive resumé was on display. Instead, she stood before an auditorium of delegates, celebrities, and politicians to declare her support for her husband, J.D. Vance, who had just been announced as Donald Trump's running mate. In her speech, Usha admitted, "It's safe to say that neither J.D., nor I expected to find ourselves in this position." Indeed, J.D. is quite unlike anyone that the Trump campaign as ever seen.

One of the biggest factors differentiating her from the Trump women central to the campaign is, of course, her style. From her clothes to her shoes to her hair, the Yale-educated lawyer stands out from the rest.

Over the years, many of the women participating in Donald Trump's presidential campaigns have become associated with what is often their brightly colored and eye-popping attire. Melania Trump had one of her most attention-grabbing fashion moments ever on a 2017 trip to Paris, where she was photographed wearing a bright red Dior suit and a pair of matching heels. Kimberly Guifoyle, Donald Trump Jr.'s fiancée, celebrated her 55th birthday in a hot pink sequined cocktail dress. And even Trump campaign advisor Alina Habba has been known to attend events dressed from head to toe in scarlet. 

In a piece for The New York Times, chief fashion critic Vanessa Friedman noted, "There is a certain kind of look that the women in Mr. Trump's closest orbit — his wife, daughters and daughters-in-law — all share, and that has become a defining gender trope in his own political reality show." Friedman later added, "It calls to mind a cross between a Miss America — or Miss Universe — pageant contestant and a Fox newscaster."

However, Usha Vance does not seem to be keen on this particular style. While she could've worn something bold for the first day of the Republican National Convention, she avoided a vibrant color one might've expected for a woman in, as Friedman put it, "Mr. Trump's closest orbit." Instead, she wore a simple beige number and blended easily into the background.

When asked about the difficulties of choosing campaign-appropriate clothing, Melania Trump told Elle, "I don't find it to be challenging. I style myself and choose what to wear based on what I feel good in it." Of course, it just so happens that Melania Trump feels best in designer wear.

As a former model herself, Melania has always been passionate about big name brands. When she and Donald Trump were married back in 2005, her Dior wedding gown cost a whopping $100,000. Since then, she has shone in a white Hervé Pierre floor-length gown, a baby blue Ralph Lauren inauguration suit, and a Carolina Herrera dress, which she wore to India. Many other women involved in the Trump campaign have a similar taste in expensive fashion, with Tiffany Trump, Lara Trump, and Kimberly Guilfoyle all wearing Chiara Boni at a 2023 Trump rally. At her first appearance at the 2024 Republican National Convention, Melania Trump opted for luxury red Dior suit.

Despite all eyes being on Usha Vance as she addressed the crowd on the third day of the RNC, she refrained from wearing a pricey designer dress to the event. As noted in The New York Times, Usha's RNC ensemble was "not identifiably designer. The effect was appropriate, but also no-nonsense." According to a report in WWD, Usha purchased the item off the rack at Saks Fifth Avenue. When compared to many of the style-centric women in the Trump campaign, Usha seems to represent quite the change.  

Style is not just about clothing — it's about presentation, as well. When it comes to presentation, there is no doubt Usha Vance embraces a very different strategy than most of the other women from the Trump campaign.

While almost all of the women closest to Donald Trump have long flowing locks, Usha has opted for a more corporate look. As chief fashion critic Vanessa Friedman wrote for The New York Times, the women associated with Trump's campaign have embraced a look that "involves a lot of hair, often left to cascade in glossy, carefully controlled Breck girl waves." Meanwhile, Usha has maintained her hair at shoulder-length. She also has avoided any kind of dyes and highlights.

Although it's hard to say why Usha has chosen a different style to, say, Melania Trump, the reason could boil down to career choices. While Melania worked for many years as a professional model, Usha Vance served as a corporate litigator at Munger, Tolles & Olson in San Francisco. In her line of work, a short hairstyle if often seen as practical and professional. As New York City hair stylist Franco Della Grazia told Elle, "A woman who turns up for a corporate job interview with long, superstyled hair will be perceived as high-maintenance ... [or] as someone who might spend too much time on herself — and not enough on her work."

Her hairstyle is not the only part of Usha Vance's presentation that makes her stand out among her Trump campaign colleagues. The lawyer has also been known to keep her makeup to a minimum. During her speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention, Usha Vance embraced a more natural look. She sported what appeared to be a touch of foundation, just the faintest hint of eyeshadow, and a very natural shade of lipstick. This allowed her to lean into her own inherent beauty as she shone onstage.

Interestingly, this represents a very different strategy from what we typically see of the other women in Trump's arena, who are usually wearing heavy foundation, a bright lip, and a smoky eye. Moreover, lots of mascara and even fake lashes are integral to the look.

At the RNC, several of the Trump women leaned into the more over-the-top appearance — especially Lara Trump, who wore what could only be described as a distracting amount of makeup. As hair and makeup artist Luna Viola exclusively told The List, "The tone of her skin also looks very bronzy, adding a lot of orange warmth to her skin tone." Usha Vance's natural look could not have been more different from Lara's overly bronzed face.

Shortly after Usha Vance's RNC debut, the public noted that she had something no other Trump woman ostensibly had before — visible gray hairs. Although a 38-year-old woman sporting the occasional gray streak is normal, it is out of the ordinary for a woman in Trump's circle to willingly show any sign of aging.

Many of the women central to the campaign have hair that is dyed and skin that does not wrinkle. Close-up images of Lara Trump's face show almost no expression lines around the eyes, mouth, and forehead. In contrast, we see Usha's eyes crinkle when she smiles. Similar expression lines have seemed to etch themselves into her cheeks.

In that sense, it seems likely that Usha Vance has avoided any kind of Botox and fillers — while board-certified cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Mariano Busso tell The List, Lara not so much. The same is rumored to be true regarding various other Trump women as well.

Botox, fillers, and facelifts are not the only type of procedures on the market. According to a report by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the most popular plastic surgeries in the United States are liposuctions, breast augmentations, and abdominoplasties (also known as "tummy tucks"). Rhinoplasties, while less popular, are also reportedly on the rise.

From afar, it seems that J.D. Vance's wife, Usha Vance, has not engaged in any of these procedures. Compared to Kimberly Guilfoyle, who has been accused of using lip filler, Usha appears to boast a very natural mouth. The Yale-educated lawyer's nose, jawline, and chin also seem to be the same characteristics that she was born with. After all, her features have not changed much over the years. Meanwhile, when it comes to Guilfoyle, plastic surgeon Dr. Gary Motykie told the Daily Mail that the former reporter's cheeks and lips both seemed too large to be natural. According to the doctor, women Guilfoyle's age will experience a natural shrinkage of these areas, and thus far, the Trump campaign star's features have remained quite plump.

In addition to Guilfoyle, Lara Trump may have potentially gotten a rhinoplasty, Dr. Mariano Busso told The List. "Lara has a very defined jawline most likely due to a face-lift," Busso also revealed.

If there's one thing that the Trump women are not known for, it's sensible shoes. In 2017, a piece in Vanity Fair called out Melania Trump for wearing stilettos on her way to visit Hurricane Harvey victims in Texas. Ivanka Trump was similarly accused of wearing inappropriate attire after she was spotted traveling to the president's rustic Camp David retreat — also in stilettos. 

To some extent, this is no surprise. As a former runway model, Melania is ostensibly comfortable wearing teetering heels. Ivanka, meanwhile, created her own Ivanka Trump shoe line, which features quite a few models that fall outside the category of "practical."

Practical, though, seems to be a style that Usha Vance adores. The mother of three wore a pair of flats on her first day at the 2024 Republican National Convention and a pair of chunky black sandal heels for her speech on the third day of the RNC. In contrast to the towering stilettos preferred by many of the Trump women, Usha Vance's shoes boasted heels of about 2 or 3 inches. However, while her footwear was relatively simple, it was also quite stylish.

They say that less is more, and when it comes to jewelry, Usha Vance's motto appears to be "less all the way." She refrained from wearing earrings, bracelets, and broaches during her 2024 speech at the Republican National Convention. In fact, she didn't really accessorize at all. The only bit of jewelry that she wore was a simple and elegant wedding ring set.

Naturally, this was quite a departure from the jewelry worn by many of her colleagues from the Trump campaign. As the owner of the now-defunct Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry, the former president's eldest daughter has been particularly known for wearing quite a bit of bling. Over the years, Ivanka has been spotted in pieces ranging from enormous floral costume earrings to a large turquoise broach with matching earrings. In 2016, she was even called out by Quartz for using her "60 Minutes" interview to promote a $10,800 gold bangle that was being sold as part of her Metropolitan Collection.

As if Ivanka's jewelry choices have not been significant enough, Melania Trump has arguably had even more iconic jewelry moments. When she and Donald Trump got engaged in 2005, he reportedly offered her an enormous 15-carat diamond ring. Retailer Graff Diamonds told Forbes that Trump paid $1.5 million for the impressive jewel. This contrasts distinctly with Usha's simpler style. Almost as soon as she joined the Trump campaign, Usha Vance managed to stand out among the rest.

Historically speaking, Usha Vance has stood out for her resistance to many of the trends embraced by other women associated with the Trump family. However, on the day of her husband, J.D. Vance's, vice-presidential inauguration, the second lady totally transformed her look. In stark contrast to her previous style choices — which emphasized Usha's natural beauty, her inauguration look leaned into something more artificial. With her burgundy lipstick, copious eyeshadow, and dark eyeliner, Usha fit right in with the Trump family's famously make-up heavy glam. Kimberly Guilfoyle also wore a good deal of eyeliner to the inauguration activities, while Tiffany Trump went for a shiny lip that seemed to sparkle on her mouth.

Completing Usha Vance's style transformation, the second lady matched her makeup to her attire. Her soft pink blush seemed to go perfectly with her Oscar de la Renta peacoat, and her floral earrings added even more femininity to this "pretty in pink" outfit. This shift in style shows that Usha may be open to embracing elements of the typical "Trumpian" women's look. She may have even chosen the outfit as a nod to Melania Trump. After all, Usha's peacoat had the same high collar and dress-to-coat function as the Ralph Lauren piece that Melania wore to President Donald Trump's first inauguration ceremony in 2017. Either way, her choice might go to show that Usha Vance is not ready to get iced out of Trump's inner circle.

Just because Usha Vance wore a pink peacoat to her husband's vice-presidential inauguration does not mean that the second lady is prepared to give up on her personal sense of style altogether. Later that evening at the inaugural ball, Usha returned to her more understated look — albeit in a very classy gown. The piece, which was designed by Beirut-born designer Reem Acra, featured a gray and blue dégradé colors. The remainder of the dress was overlain with sparkly navy lines that criss-crossed their way to the strapless neckline. In contrast to the bright red and hot pink gowns typically sported by women in the Trump family, Usha's dress reflected the somber colors that are more typical of her wardrobe.

Interestingly, the gown did not just highlight Usha Vance's more usual style choices, but it also thrust her stunning hairstyle into the limelight. In contrast to women in the Trump family, Usha has not attempted to hide her age by dying her locks. Since becoming second lady, Usha Vance has not caved to any potential pressure to dye her gray streaks. Instead, the foggy tones of the gown that she wore to the inaugural ball accentuated her hair color. Meanwhile, the navy glitter on the dress almost seemed to mimic the pattern of white in her hair. Usha also appeared to wear her short bob with pride — setting her apart from long-haired beauties like Ivanka Trump.

Ever since she was thrust into the public eye in 2024, Usha Vance has been criticized for many of her fashion choices. That being said, it's important to recall that Usha was trained as a lawyer, not a stylist. Although she is now surrounded by women who have worked in industries like media and fashion, Usha remains a corporate woman at heart. Even Usha Vance's closest friends say that she's extremely ambitious – a personality trait that was perhaps reflected in the outfit she wore to the interfaith service following her husband's vice-presidential inauguration.

At the gathering, Usha Vance wore a modest white ensemble that seemed too corporate in nature — pairing a long, cream-colored skirt with a classic V-neck top. Although this matching set might seem like a nod to one of 2024's biggest trends, it's hard to look at Usha's top without seeing a work blouse. The bottom half of her outfit, meanwhile, almost comes across as a professional pencil skirt. In fact, if the second lady was hoping to head back to the office, she could simply throw on a black blazer and grab her briefcase. While this ensemble is hardly one of Usha Vance's most expensive outfits, it might be her most genuine one yet. It demonstrates that she isn't afraid to embrace her professional side — even as she spends time with women who clearly prefer the "beauty queen" vibe.