Politics Today News Political Strategists Discuss Gov Newsom, Hypothetical Presidential Race

Front-runner or flash in the pan? Sizing up Newsom, 2028

Two LA Times columnists differ over the presidential prospects of California's governor, who has a White House gleam in his eye. Is his Golden State address an intractable obstacle or not? Read More

Newsom leans into shutdown fight as he cements 2028 front-runner status

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is seizing on a shutdown deal that has angered Democrats to bolster his standing as his party’s front-runner for the White House in 2028. Democrats have largely ... Read More

Newsom’s fight to stay relevant ahead of 2028 may be his toughest test yet

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) proved his political muscle with his decisive Proposition 50 win, but the question now is whether he can sustain that influence beyond California and stay relevant, not just ... Read More

GOP fixates on Zohran Mamdani as strategists warn Gavin Newsom is ‘the real threat’

Republicans are fixating on Mamdani’s rise, but GOP strategists warn that the real political threat ahead of 2028 is Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA). Read More

Newsom is running alone, for now. Is he vulnerable from the left?

One year from the unofficial launch of the 2028 campaign, Newsom appears to be running alone and out front in an open field, with expected competitors taking few steps to blunt his momentum. Read More

Harris and Newsom signal they could both run for president. So who has the advantage?

After decades, the parallel career tracks of former Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom are once again back on a collision course. The frenenemy nature of this sometimes-fraught ... Read More

Gavin's big gamble: The California governor's redistricting battle with Trump sets up 2028

Gavin Newsom's 2028 presidential ambitions are about to get a self-imposed stress test after months of putting his political muscle behind one of the Democratic Party's more daring campaigns of 2025. Read More