California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that he will not seek the presidency in 2028 if former Vice President Kamala Harris decides to run again.
The statement, made without a formal campaign announcement, allows Newsom to signal presidential ambitions while sidestepping the filing deadlines, legal requirements, and media scrutiny that come with an official launch.
Joel Pollak, opinion editor at the California Post, argues in a piece for the New York Post that the move is a shrewd political calculation rather than a genuine act of deference. Pollak writes that by publicly stepping aside for Harris, Newsom is paying tribute not just to the party’s leadership but to the coalitions — particularly Black voters and women — who have been wary of him.
Harris was the Democratic Party’s 2024 nominee, chosen without a public primary vote, and went on to lose the popular vote to Donald Trump. Pollak contends that a third presidential run by Harris would struggle to attract donors or voters given that record, meaning Newsom’s gesture costs him little in practice while buying him goodwill within the party.
Newsom also gave Harris a way to show magnanimity — to elevate herself by allowing him to run, rather than shaming herself by attempting yet another failed presidential effort (her third).
Pollak’s piece is candid about Newsom’s political liabilities, describing him as unable to govern effectively, thin-skinned, and hypocritical — a reference to his widely criticized dinner at the French Laundry restaurant during pandemic restrictions he himself had imposed. Even so, Pollak calls Newsom the current frontrunner for the 2028 Democratic nomination, crediting him as the party’s most skilled political operator.
Whether Harris will ultimately run again remains unannounced.
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