White conservatives behind Vance's ascent

With Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 US presidential election, JD Vance, a newcomer to conservatism who entered the political arena just two years ago, has become the vice-president of the United States. Vance, however, was well-known to the American public even before the election, thanks to his bestselling memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, published in 2016, reprinted in 2018 and adapted into an eponymous Netflix film in 2020.

The book is not just a clichéd rags-to-riches story of a small-town youth overcoming adversity. Through Vance's own tumultuous upbringing, it reflects on the root causes of the struggles faced by the white working class in the impoverished communities of the Midwest and the South. At its core, the book grapples with the question: Why has the American Dream become increasingly elusive for this demographic?

Vance grew up in Middletown, Ohio, a declining industrial town, in a traditional conservative community. Middletown residents hold strong religious beliefs, family values, and have a deep sense of national identity — values that starkly contrast with the liberal, internationalist views often held by urban elites. This cultural divide has exacerbated the gap between impoverished rural areas and prosperous cities. While liberal elites advocate for welfare states, globalization and transnational cooperation as solutions, conservative rural communities argue that such policies, led by elites, have worsened their livelihoods and eroded traditional family ethics and cultural values.