JD Vance embraced internet culture this Halloween by dressing up as his own viral meme. He appeared in a curly brown wig, a red tie, and blue blazer—echoing exaggerated, online mock versions of himself.
In a video posted online, he said “Happy Halloween… and remember to say thank you!” before spinning around as the classic “Twilight Zone” theme played in the background. On social media, he shared a selfie in costume wide-eyed and smiling, clearly leaning into the joke.
The costume references a heavily circulated meme stemming from an Oval Office exchange earlier this year where Vance, alongside Donald Trump, challenged Volodymyr Zelensky to “say thank you” after U.S. support for Ukraine—which exploded into meme culture. Vance has since used the meme versions of himself in posts, including one captioned “Can you hear the screaming”.
Public reaction has been mixed: some viewed the self-parody as clever political savvy, while others trolled him with even more memes. Either way, the move underscores how political figures are increasingly adapting to and playing along with online viral culture.