JD Vance's Disastrous New Haircut Makes You Wonder Whether He's A Plant To Take Down Donald Trump

The 2024 campaign for The White House is in full swing with candidates out shaking hands, kissing babies, and in the case of JD Vance, trying to appear like a normal, everyday guy — but failing miserably. The vice-presidential hopeful stopped in Valdosta, GA, on August 22 to pick up donuts for the gang, and to chat with the locals at Holt's Sweet Shop.

News organizations were on hand to capture the viral moment that keeps getting worse the more you look at it. On top of the awkward conversation, the hilarious lack of enthusiasm from the store's staff at meeting Vance, and the politician's painful ignorance of delicious donut types, there was one more glaringly obvious thing the cameras captured: Vance's hair. While it's usually running mate Donald J. Trump's decade of bad hair that garners attention, the Ohio senator appears to be making a play for the crown of Mane Incompetence, and it's not doing their campaign any favors.

Folks on Reddit, Instagram, Facebook, and X, formerly known as Twitter, had digs and disses that cited Vance's lock look as one more reason to vote against Trump. Several people also questioned the skills of his barber, but as a hair and beauty editor with over 20 years experience, I'm chalking this one up to user error.

JD Vance has worn his hair short for years, but in recent weeks, the vice-presidential candidate has been sporting a different sort of abbreviated snip. In what may be an attempt to appear more trendy and "with-it" to voters, Vance went with an almost-shaved look around the sides and back, with longer layers at the top of the crown. When the cut is fresh, the top half fades into the bottom, leaving no distinct line between the two different lengths.

However, the short snip requires maintenance, and in an effort to keep that back hairline above the collar, Vance may have taken matters into his own hands with disastrous results. During his visit to the donut shop in Georgia, Vance's hair looked like his wife Usha, a bodyguard, or perhaps a mischievous childless cat lady grabbed a pair of electric clippers and shaved down the sides and back, leaving the top untouched. With no fade to tether the two lengths together, the top layers floated away in a mushroom cloud, showing off their piece-y ends in a choppy sort of way.

Vance may have been able to temporarily fix the issue with a ton of styling product (we're talking Eric Trump-level gel), but that would have messed up the trendy vibe he was so sure he had mastered. Next up on Vance's to-do list: Make a barber appointment, practice small talk, read up on donuts.