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Vice President Kamala Harris is reportedly signaling to her allies that she is exploring options for a political comeback, fueling speculation about a possible run for California governor in 2026 or another presidential bid in 2028.
Despite Harris’s lackluster performance in the 2024 presidential election, she is said to be “staying in the fight” and keeping her options open, according to five anonymous sources from her inner circle, as reported by Politico.
“She doesn’t have to decide if she wants to run for something again in the next six months,” a former campaign aide stated. “The natural thing to do would be to set up some type of entity that would give her the opportunity to travel and give speeches and preserve her political relationships.”
Harris became the first Democrat in over three decades to lose the popular vote in a presidential election, yet she maintains a 93% favorability rating among Democrats, according to a recent Gallup poll. However, her tenure as vice president was marked by historically low approval ratings, with 49% of registered voters viewing her “negatively” and 39% “very negatively,” according to an NBC News poll from June.
If Harris decides to launch a presidential campaign in 2028, she would face significant challenges, including navigating a competitive Democratic primary—a contest she avoided in 2024 after Biden was ousted as the party’s nominee. Current betting markets favor California Governor Gavin Newsom and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro for the 2028 Democratic nomination.
Despite these odds, early polling by Echelon Insights shows Harris as the clear favorite for a 2028 Democratic primary, with 41% support compared to Newsom’s 8%. However, some Democrats are skeptical of her ability to secure the nomination. “I can’t conceivably imagine the party turning to her a second time,” an anonymous Democratic strategist said.
Speculation also swirls around a potential gubernatorial run in California in 2026, as Harris previously served as the state’s attorney general. Former Harris aide Brian Brokaw commented on her decision-making process: “She is not someone who makes rash decisions. She takes, sometimes, a painfully long time to make decisions. So I would pretty much guarantee you she has no idea what her next move is.”
Brokaw added, “Could she run for governor? Yes. Do I think she wants to run for governor? Probably not. Could she win? Definitely. Would she like the job? I don’t know. Could she run for president again? Yes. Would she have a whole bunch of skepticism from the outset? Absolutely.”
Harris, who is currently 60, would be 64 years old in 2028 if she decided to pursue a second presidential campaign.
