Usha Vance's Worst Footwear Fails Would Have Carrie Bradshaw Throwing Up

Usha Vance's advancement into the stylistic spotlight has been clunky at times. There have been highlights, such as Usha's skin-baring Oscar de la Renta dress at the vice president's dinner after her husband, Vice President JD Vance, was officially sworn into office, but there have also been multiple fashion mishaps for the second lady.

To her credit, Usha has been fairly candid about her sartorial blind spots in interviews. "My reception into this world — and I'm not from a particularly wealthy background, not from a very fashion-oriented background personally or professionally — has been really positive," she told The Free Press in April 2025 after a few months of being SLOTUS. She had adapted fairly quickly to the stresses of looking her best on high-profile occasions, such as the Senate Spouses Luncheon, when Usha's fashion outshone Melania Trump's, though some of those fashion high notes may have come by accident. In May 2025, while appearing on the "Citizen McCain" podcast, Usha spoke about where styling her clothes ranked on her priority list. "It's not that I don't enjoy clothes or fashion or anything like that ... I've never been really chasing looking like the most fashionable person out there," she said. Since her husband became vice president, Usha has had more access to designer wares. "And then there are a lot of other times where my attitude is — I have a closet. Let's just mix and match what's in it," she added. 

Unfortunately for Usha, that freestyle blending of her closet's contents has yielded results that would make Carrie Bradshaw physically ill. Multiple times, Usha's shoe choice as SLOTUS has gotten off on the wrong foot. We looked at moments when Usha's footwear has undone the entire ensemble, and what shoe the "Sex and the City character would've chosen instead. 

To celebrate the Ohio State Buckeyes' national college football championship, JD Vance and Usha Vance hosted the team at the White House in April 2025. During the visit, JD mishandled the championship trophy while giving a speech, but Usha had her own fumble as well. For the occasion, SLOTUS sported the team's colors by wearing a red dress with a white blazer over top. Perhaps wanting to look extra sporty around the college athletes, she opted for an odd choice of footwear — a pair of white sneakers. Usha's shoe game was off during the Ohio State visit, not only being overly casual, as everyone else was in a suit and dress shoes, but the shoes themselves were off-white and not very crisp.

JD and Usha Vance get personalized Ohio State jerseys pic.twitter.com/YrKjVBSkA3

— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) April 16, 2025

This is one definitive example of footwear that Carrie Bradshaw would have steered clear of. In fact, as the style of adding sneakers to women's wear proliferated, some "Sex and the City" fans wondered whether the show's lead would've sported the footwear. The consensus was Carrie would never have worn the uggo plain white kicks Usha did in her Ohio State outfit.

The 2024 Republican National Convention was a celebratory time for the Vances, as JD Vance was officially announced as Donald Trump's presidential running mate. Usha Vance, however, dropped hints that she was not thrilled about White House life, as she didn't bother getting dressed up for the coronation. The former lawyer chose a beige dress that was form-fitting, but she underwhelmed in the spotlight. Usha then completed the look with a pair of maple-brown clog sandals that had straps around the ankles. Not only was the choice of flats on the day her husband was announced as VP running mate a lackluster one, but so was the neutral color scheme of the clunky-looking shoes.

The woman who played Carrie Bradshaw, Sarah Jessica Parker herself, has been spotted wearing flat-sole, clog-like Uggs. Do not mistake that as an endorsement from Carrie, as when Parker wore them, it wasn't during a high-profile event, but when she was rocking a casual 'fit in the streets of New York City.

There were several reasons why JD Vance and Usha Vance's trip to India was rocky, but the family's visit to the Taj Mahal offered a lovely photographic moment. The second lady color-coordinated with her sons, who wore traditional kurtas, as she donned a light-blue-and-white-striped summer dress. Once again, it was Usha's choice of footwear that kept the ensemble from being a winner. She wore a pair of white leather loafers, and this time around, the color choice was correct, but they appeared ill-fitting and were chunky with a bow-tie embellishment around the front.

If Usha were following the Carrie Bradshaw playbook, then she could've still pulled off accessorizing with loafers. In this instance, SLOTUS' fashion faux pas didn't come because she opted for flats. The style of footwear and color choice were fine in this case, but Carrie would have preferred a sleeker loafer, such as the earthy-toned Chanel ones she wore on the show.

While on the campaign trail in September 2024, JD Vance attended an East Carolina Panthers football game along with Usha Vance. Prior to the game, the pair went to the college bar Sup Dogs in Greenville. JD wore a white golf shirt with the team's nickname, while his wife elected to wear a black sleeveless bodysuit with blue jeans. Clearly looking to blend in with the college crowd, Usha finished off her look with a pair of sneakers. Instead of coordinating with the school's purple-and-white color scheme, she left her white kicks at home and went with a pair of bright red sneakers. Meanwhile, JD wore a pair of gray sneakers with purple laces as an homage to the team.

This choice would offend Carrie Bradshaw on two levels: the sneakers and the color. The "Sex and the City" character may have gone casual for the sporting event, but she would've added flair with heels. Plus, they would have coordinated with the team's colorway of purple, and maybe rocked the feathered Jimmy Choo shoes.

Usha Vance's behavior toward JD Vance in Greenland suggested trouble in paradise. Originally, it was supposed to be a solo trip for SLOTUS, but her husband ended up tagging along. The couple put on brave faces, however, as they wore matching olive-green parkas while visiting the United States military's Pituffik Space Base. When they posed for photos, the climate looked exceedingly chilly as Usha wore a pair of black pants and thick black gloves. Understandably, she rocked a pair of snow boots to cope with the terrain, which looked fine considering the snowy conditions. What looked off was that Usha neglected to tuck the cuffs of her pants into her boots, and the bottom of her pants billowed out. Technically, this was a pants malfunction, but it still made her shoes look wacky.

The footwear selection was not the greatest issue here, but rather how Usha styled them with her pants. She should have consulted the Sarah Jessica Parker style guide, as the woman who played Carrie Bradshaw sported emerald-green, high-heeled, suede boots that were loose-fitting. To avoid a fashion mishap that befell the second lady, SJP rolled the cuffs of her jeans up to let the bulky boots speak for themselves.