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New Delhi: US Vice President JD Vance who found himself at the centre of a controversy over his conversion remarks on his Hindu wife Usha has clarified that she is not a Christian and has no plans to convert. Vance recently drew backlash for saying that he hopes his Indian-origin, Hindu-raised wife would convert to Christianity one day. He also said that she goes to church with him and their children as they are being raised as Christians.
Following immense criticism over his remarks, Vance in a lengthy post called the backlash "disgusting" and said that though his wife is not planning to convert, he, like any other interfaith couple, hopes she may see things as he does.
He wrote the long explanation on X while responding to one of the posts that accused him of throwing his wife's religion under the bus, in public, "for a moment's acceptance by groypers." Condemning the post, he said that it wreaked of "anti-Christian bigotry".
"First off, the question was from a person seemingly to my left, about my interfaith marriage. I'm a public figure, and people are curious, and I wasn't going to avoid the question", he wrote on X.
Vance further said that Christianity helped him understand that the Gospel is good for human beings. He clarified that it was his wife who encouraged him to "reengage" with his faith years ago.
"Yes, Christians have beliefs. And yes, those beliefs have many consequences, one of which is that we want to share them with other people. That is a completely normal thing, and anyone who's telling you otherwise has an agenda," he added.
Why Vance came under fire
The US Vice President stoked controversy on Wednesday after he hopes his wife embraces Christianity and is moved by the same thing that he was moved by in church.
Speaking at a Turning Point USA event in Mississippi, he said, "Now, most Sundays, Usha will come with me to church. As I've told her, and as I have said publicly, and as I will say now in front of 10,000 of my closest friends -- do I hope, eventually, that she is somehow moved by the same thing that I was moved by in church? Yeah, I honestly do wish that because I believe in the Christian gospel and I hope eventually my wife comes to see it the same way".
He, however, said that if she doesn't willing to do so, he is fine with it as "everybody has free will". "That's something you work out with your friends, with your family, with the person that you love," he added.
Who is JD Vance's wife Usha
Usha Vance is an American lawyer who has been the second lady of the US since 2025, being married to Vice President JD Vance. She is the first Asian American and first Hindu American second lady. The couple met while studying at Yale Law School.
