Kamala Harris gets serious about whether to run for California governor
Former Vice President Kamala Harris is seriously considering a run for governor of California — and has given herself a deadline to decide.
At a pre-Oscars party last weekend, Harris was asked by another partygoer when she would make a decision about jumping into the California governor's race. She gave a definitive answer, according to two people with knowledge of the conversation: the end of the summer.
And in calls to supporters, allies and trusted aides in recent weeks, Harris has made clear that she plans to make a decision in a few months.
Harris' timeline, reported here first, is the clearest indication to date that she may enter the race to succeed the termed-out Gavin Newsom in the Golden State. And, allies said, a win would almost certainly take a 2028 presidential run — which Harris is still mulling — off the table.
Harris maintains significant leads in early national polls of the field of possible candidates, yet she's had some frank conversations with advisers and confidants in Washington about how difficult they expect the presidential primary to be.
Harris aides note she has long been intrigued by the idea of being the chief executive of the fifth-largest economy in the world and the first Black woman to be governor in America.
Harris' public appearances since leaving office point to a politician who sees a future as a Democratic Party leader — from one coast or another.
Over the last few weeks, she made an appearance at the NAACP Image Awards to accept the Chairman's prize. She is headed to Las Vegas, which is in an early primary state, this weekend for a moderated conversation about artificial intelligence and talking with advisers about other ways to keep her name in the national conversation.
Harris has also kept on some of her most senior and trusted aides under her newly formed organization Pioneer49, including chief of staff Sheila Nix and senior advisers Kirsten Allen and Ike Irby. Longtime advisers Brian Nelson and Minyon Moore as well as her White House chief of staff Lorraine Voles all remain key parts of her informal kitchen cabinet. Other top aides in California are waiting for the signal from Harris to engage. Since losing the election, Harris has told all her aides and allies to keep every possible path open.
'I am staying in this fight,' she repeated to allies in phone calls and at private gatherings.
Harris has yet to convene formal conversations about a run for governor.
For now, the mere prospect of her running for the top job in the state has already sent several California Democratic candidates in the 2026 field for governor looking for other options. State Attorney General Rob Bonta will seek reelection, telling POLITICO he won't run for governor in part because Harris was likely to clear the field if she runs.
'I hope she does. I have already raised my hand to endorse her, if she does,' Bonta said, 'but I think only Kamala Harris knows the answer.'
Former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, who is eyeing the race closely, has suggested she would not challenge Harris in the state's primary where the leading two candidates, regardless of their party, advance to a November matchup.
Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, a close Harris ally in California who shares some of the same top consultants, would also stand aside and likely slot into another statewide race if Harris runs. Others like former state Senate leader Toni Atkins, former state Controller Betty Yee and state schools Superintendent Tony Thurmond have long supported Harris. Only former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has suggested he will stay in the race, though even people close to him have shared doubts about those plans.
'Her name recognition, her favorables, her ability to run a successful campaign would have the impact of clearing the field on the Democratic side," Bonta said. 'If anyone wants to stay in, will I tell them, 'You should leave because she's clearing the field?' Absolutely not. They can run. I think they'll lose, and I will support her.'
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