Newsom Rules Out 2028 Run if Harris Joins Presidential Race

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday there's one person who would keep him out of a 2028 Democratic primary: Kamala Harris. In a CNN interview taped while he was fly fishing in Montana, the Democrat said he would not launch a White House bid if Harris runs again, arguing they'd be chasing the same voters. Pitting the two against each other, he said, would be "mutual assured destruction" and "a gift" to rival candidates, the Hill reports. Newsom described near-total overlap in their support networks, saying the "Venn diagram" of their bases is "pure crossover" and adding, "I wouldn't do that to people."

The two also are from the same deep-blue state, a fact strategists say could complicate efforts to reach independents and disaffected Republicans. The former 2024 Democratic nominee said last week that she had not decided whether to run, per the Los Angeles Times. Polls have shown Harris with a double-digit lead in a hypothetical 2028 race against Newsom, though the Times reports finding more enthusiasm for the governor among California's major donors earlier this year than for the former vice president.