Vice President JD Vance and his wife Usha Vance have joyously named their newborn son Alec Neel Vance, a less common name in today’s landscape. The couple made their announcement on Sunday through a statement shared on social media, indicating their happiness.
“We are excited to announce that our baby boy, Alec Neel Vance, was born this morning,” wrote JD Vance. “Usha and the baby are happy and healthy, and our kids are overjoyed to meet their little brother.” The couple expressed gratitude to military doctors and personnel at Walter Reed Medical Center and the White House Medical Unit for their support.
The White House officially acknowledged and reshared their post, offering congratulations for the couple’s fourth child. Alec’s birth is significant, marking a rare event in recent U.S. political history. He is the first child born to a vice president in over 150 years. The previous instance was in 1870 with Schuyler Colfax.
This moment arrives six months after the Vances shared they were expecting. Alec now joins his siblings Ewan, 9, Vivek, 6, and Mirabel, 4. At 40, Usha Vance represents a demographic of mothers with increasing birth rates, despite a national decline.
Alec, once popular in the U.S., has seen a decline in recent decades. Social Security Administration (SSA) data shows its popularity peaked at 109th in 1994 with 3,322 babies, but dropped to 977th by 2025, with 234 babies named Alec. Data reflects Alec’s fluctuating popularity since 1900, with a high in 1994 and a consistent decline since.
This trend contrasts with the current top boy names, such as Liam and Noah, and girl names like Olivia and Charlotte. A 2025 Nameberry survey suggests parents prefer names that fall outside the top 10, searching for uniqueness. The Vance children, with names like Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel, do not appear on SSA’s top 1,000 lists, aligning with this pattern.
The choice of Alec adds another distinctive name to the Vance family tradition. As once common baby names diverge from current popularity, Alec stands as a unique choice for the Vice President’s family.