Less than 4 months into Trump's 2nd term, Dems are already eyeing the 2028 race
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By Paul Steinhauser
Published May 13, 2025
President Donald Trump has not even hit the four-month mark yet in his second tour of duty in the White House, but that is not stopping Democrats from already looking ahead to the 2028 presidential campaign.
The very early moves in the next White House race by potential presidential contenders are clearly underway.
The latest comes from 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg, who later served as Transportation secretary in former President Joe Biden's administration. He is headlining a town hall with veterans on Tuesday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Iowa's caucuses for half a century kicked off both major political parties' presidential nominating calendars until the Democratic National Committee (DNC) demoted the Hawkeye State on their 2024 schedule.
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Another potential contender, two-term Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, late last month, gave the keynote address at a major state party fundraising gala in New Hampshire, the state that for a century has held the first primary in the race for the White House.
Even though he says he is not laying the groundwork for a 2028 presidential run, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore later this month will headline a major state party fundraising dinner in South Carolina, which the DNC anointed last cycle as their lead-off contest on the primary calendar.
Also making noise is two-term Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who said recently he would consider running for president if he felt he could successfully unite the country.
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Additionally, progressive firebrand Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York grabbed plenty of attention the past couple of months, co-headlining a slew of large rallies across the country with longtime progressive champion Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, which sparked plenty of 2028 speculation.
The Democratic Party has been in the political wilderness since last November's election setbacks, when Republicans won back control of the White House and the Senate and defended their fragile House majority. Republicans additionally made gains among Black and Hispanic voters as well as younger voters, all traditional members of the Democratic Party's base.
Since Trump's return to power, an increasingly angry and energized base of Democrats has been pushing for party leaders to take a stronger stand in pushing back against the president's sweeping and controversial agenda during the opening months of his second administration.
Democrats are not only looking ahead to next year's midterms, when they hope to make ballot box gains, but also to the next presidential race.
"There was a sense of hopelessness earlier this year among Democrats, as Trump came in with his wrecking ball, and it seemed like there was nothing but futile opposition to him," longtime Democratic strategist and communication Chris Moyer told Fox News. "So thinking about a presidential race with potential candidates is a way to get some hope back and look towards a future that doesn't include Trump."
Moyer, a veteran of a handful of Democratic presidential campaigns, said the race is "wide open, and it won't be long before we see clear maneuvering from a litany of candidates."
The results of the 2026 midterm elections will have a major impact on the shape of the next White House race, too.
For now, however, here is an early look at Democrats considered to be potential 2028 presidential contenders. Kamala Harris
After lying low as the Biden administration came to a close, former Vice President Kamala Harris has picked up the political pace of late, including headlining a major DNC fundraiser last week in New York City.
Among her campaign options that she is weighing is a 2026 run for the open governor's seat in her home state of California and another bid in 2028 for the White House.
A source in the former vice president's political orbit confirmed to Fox News Digital two months ago that Harris had told allies she would decide by the end of summer on whether to launch a 2026 gubernatorial campaign.
Harris served as San Francisco district attorney, California attorney general and represented the Golden State in the U.S. Senate before joining Biden's 2020 ticket and winning election as vice president.
Additionally, Harris would be considered the clear frontrunner for governor in heavily blue California in the race to succeed term-limited Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom.
However, early polling in the 2028 Democratic nomination race indicates that Harris would be the frontrunner, thanks in part to her name recognition within her party.
While there are plenty of voices within the party who would like to move on from the Biden/Harris era following Trump's sweeping victory, and there is little history of Democrats yearning for past defeated presidential nominees, Trump has re-written the rules when it comes to defeated White House contenders making another run.
Potential buyers' remorse of a second Trump administration could boost the 60-year-old Harris in the years to come. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York
The progressive "rock star" and best-known lawmaker among the so-called "Squad" of diverse House Democrats in October turned 35, the minimum age to run for president.
Some Democrats argue that a riveting messenger with star power is needed as the party's next nominee, and Ocasio-Cortez is guaranteed to grab plenty of attention if she ultimately decides to run.
There is also speculation the four-term federal lawmaker from New York City may primary challenge Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York when he is up for re-election in 2028. Gov. Gavin Newsom of California
California Gov. Gavin Newsom was a top surrogate for Biden during the president's re-election bid. With the blessing of the White House, the two-term California governor debated then-Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis last year on Fox News.
Newsom's travels on behalf of Biden brought him to New Hampshire and South Carolina, two crucial early voting states on the Democratic Party's nominating calendar.
After Harris, his friend and fellow Californian, replaced Biden atop the Democrats' 2024 ticket, the governor continued — after a pause — his efforts to keep Trump from returning to the White House.
While Newsom and California's Democrat-dominated legislature took action to "Trump-proof" the Golden State, the governor has also worked with Trump on key matters, including January's wildfires that devastated parts of metropolitan Los Angeles.
Newsom also appears to have moderated on some issues and invited well-known Trump allies Charlie Kirk and Steve Bannon on his weekly podcast.
The 57-year-old Newsom, who is term-limited, completes his duties in Sacramento at the end of next year, right around the time the 2028 presidential election will start to heat up. Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has become a leading voice in the Democrats' opposition to Trump and has taken steps to Trump-proof his solidly blue state.
"You come for my people, you come through me," Pritzker told reporters of his efforts to protect Illinois.
Pritzker was also a high-profile surrogate on behalf of Biden and then Harris during the 2024 cycle. Those efforts brought Pritzker to Nevada, a general election battleground state and an early-voting Democratic presidential primary state, and New Hampshire.
Additionally, the governor's recent trip to New Hampshire sparked more 2028 buzz.
However, before he makes any decision about 2028, the 60-year-old governor must decide whether he will run in 2026 for a third term steering Illinois. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan
Two-term Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer grabbed plenty of attention and became a Democratic Party rising star in 2020 when she feuded with Trump over COVID-19 federal assistance and survived a foiled kidnapping attempt.
Trump, at the time, called her "that woman from Michigan."
Along with Newsom and Pritzker, Whitmer's name was floated as a possible replacement for Biden following his disastrous debate performance against Trump in late June, before the president endorsed Harris and the party instantly coalesced around the vice president.
Whitmer was a leading surrogate for Biden and then for Harris and made a big impression on Democratic activists during a stop this summer in New Hampshire on behalf of Harris.
However, Whitmer was criticized by some in her party for appearing to cozy up to Trump during a White House visit earlier this spring.
The 53-year-old governor is term-limited and will leave office after the end of next year. Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania
Gov. Josh Shapiro, the 51-year-old first-term governor of Pennsylvania, was on Harris' short-list for vice presidential nominee.
Even though the vice president named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, Shapiro remained a top surrogate on behalf of his party's 2024 national ticket.
However, his two-day swing in New Hampshire during the final full week ahead of Election Day did raise some eyebrows and 2028 speculation.
After Harris lost battleground Pennsylvania to Trump, there was plenty of talk within the party that Harris had made the wrong choice for her running mate.
Shapiro, who has a track record of taking on the first Trump administration as Pennsylvania attorney general, is expected to play a similar role with Trump back in the White House.
The governor will be up for re-election in 2026. Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is considered by many to be another Democratic Party rising star.
The 46-year-old Army veteran, Rhodes Scholar and CEO of the charitable organization the Robin Hood Foundation during the coronavirus pandemic was elected two years ago.
Even though Moore said in a recent interview on "The View" that he's "not running" in 2028, speculation persists, fueled in part because of his upcoming stop in South Carolina.
Moore will be up for re-election in 2026. Pete Buttigieg
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who surpassed expectations during his 2020 Democratic presidential nomination run, was a very active surrogate on behalf of Biden and later Harris, during the 2024 cycle.
He helped raise a lot of money for the Democratic Party ticket, including heading a top-dollar fundraiser in New Hampshire.
The 43-year-old former South Bend, Indiana, mayor and former naval officer who served in the war in Afghanistan, is considered one of the party's biggest and brightest stars. He was known as a top communicator for the administration, including making frequent appearances on Fox News.
Fueling buzz about a potential 2028 presidential run, Buttigieg passed on a 2026 Senate bid in his adopted home state of Michigan and made a high-profile stop in Iowa on Tuesday. Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, 47, who was elected governor in 2019 and then re-elected in 2023 in red-state Kentucky, was also on Harris' longer list for potential running mates.
Beshear made plenty of new friends and contacts as he ventured to New Hampshire last month to headline the state Democratic Party's annual fall fundraising gala.
He served as Kentucky's attorney general before running for governor.
Beshear said last week in an interview with local state WDRB that "if you'd asked me a couple years ago if this is something I'd consider, I probably wouldn't have. But I don't want to leave a broken country to my kids. And so, if I'm somebody that can bring this nation together, hopefully find some common ground, it's something I'll consider." Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia
Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, 55, is a major player in Washington as the Democratic minority in the Senate fights back against the second Trump administration.
Warnock, who won Senate elections in 2020 and 2022 in battleground Georgia, served as senior pastor at the famed Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where Martin Luther King Jr. once preached.
He is up for re-election in the Senate in 2028. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey
Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, who ran for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, is considered one of the party's most talented orators.
Thanks to his 2020 run, Booker made plenty of friends and allies in such early states as New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Booker made headlines six weeks ago by delivering a record-breaking 25-hour and 5-minute marathon speech from the floor of the Senate. The speech protested the sweeping and controversial moves so far by Trump during his second administration, as well as the operations of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.
The 56-year-old senator is up for re-election in 2026. Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut
Since the November election, Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut has been very vocal about the steps Democrats need to take to win back working-class voters.
First elected to the House in 2006 and later to the Senate in 2012, the 51-year-old Murphy cruised to re-election this year by nearly 20 points, which means he would not have to decide between a re-election bid and a White House run in 2028. Rep. Ro Khanna of California
Rep. Ro Khanna, 48, was a tireless surrogate on behalf of Biden and then Harris.
He has been a regular visitor to New Hampshire in the past couple of years, including a high-profile debate last year against then-GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
Khanna has grabbed plenty of attention so far this year as he has held town halls in Republican-controlled congressional districts and targeted Vice President JD Vance with events in the vice president's home state of Ohio and at Yale Law School, where both politicians earned their legal degrees. Stephen A. Smith
The 57-year-old sports TV personality, sports radio host, sports journalist, and actor has grabbed a ton of attention this year as he has mulled a White House run and has even grabbed Trump's attention. Mark Cuban
Another potential contender with plenty of star power is Mark Cuban.
The billionaire business mogul and part-owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks' was a high-profile surrogate for Harris during her presidential election campaign. Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina
Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, 67, who at the beginning of the year finished up his eighth and final year as governor, took his name out of the Harris running mate speculation early in the process last summer.
Cooper served 16 years as North Carolina's attorney general before winning election as governor.
The former governor is being heavily recruited by Democrats to try and flip a GOP-held Senate seat in North Carolina in next year's midterms. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, 65, is halfway through her second term steering New Mexico.
The governor, a former member of Congress, was a high-profile and busy surrogate on behalf of Harris during the final weeks of the 2024 campaign.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz
The 61-year-old Minnesota governor, who served as Harris' running mate, has two years remaining in his second term in office.
While the vice presidential nominee's energy and enthusiasm on the campaign trail this year impressed plenty of Democratic strategists, the final results of the election will make any potential future national run for Tim Walz difficult.
Walz has said he is not thinking of 2028, but he has been very busy so far this year heading events across the country, and an upcoming stop in South Carolina is fueling more White House buzz.
Three other names keep coming up — Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey and former Chicago mayor, former congressman, former White House chief of staff and former ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, and Sen. Ruben Gallego of battleground Arizona. Print Close
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