The Democrats are licking their wounds after the defeat of the Vice President, Mr. Harris, to Mr. Trump, but they are already looking at who will lead their party in the presidential race in 2028.
The fight seems to be open.
The truth is that Mr. Trump himself will not vote, as the Constitution limits him to two terms. Vice President-elect JD Vance is the GOP’s most likely candidate as the party’s next nominee.
Democrats may have a flood of potential candidates, and there are disagreements within the party about what to prioritize.
Some Democrats say the party needs to start over, injecting new blood into the presidential race.
Some say Harris deserves another shot at the presidency, pointing to the 74 million votes he received earlier this month.
“Like in 2016, we’re a little lost and out of control, and we’re not sure what we want going forward,” one Democratic strategist admitted.
What seems to be true is a crowded place.
Initial names include everyone from Harris to Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia to Govs. Wes Moore of Maryland, Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Phil Murphy of New Jersey.
Here are the top contenders:
Kamala Harris
Democrats weren’t blaming Harris for their defeat, at least for the most part.
It is President Biden, who left the race in July and endorsed the vice president, who received the lion’s share of criticism.
Democrats say that in many ways the race Harris inherited from Biden was not the one he would have run if he had been the candidate in the first place.
“In many ways, this was still Joe Biden’s race. Even though he was the one who was named in the end, he still had several obstacles including the fact that he could not control himself to walk away from him when he had to do so,” said one who supported the vice president.
At the same time, Harris showed that he was capable of running an impressive campaign even in his short time in the race, according to those who were hoping for another race.
The vice president’s intelligence has also grown, and he now has the understanding and knowledge of someone who ran a $1 billion campaign.
He is also known by name. An Emerson poll this week showed Harris leading other potential candidates in 2028.
To be sure, there are several reasons to think that Harris will not be the nominee and will not withdraw from the primary competition.
Gender can be a factor. The last two times the Democrats nominated a woman to be the presidential candidate, their candidate was defeated by Trump. There will be some Democrats who will want to go the other way.
Harris also ran a billion-dollar campaign that lost. And his campaign was not yet complete. There are some Democrats who think it would be foolish to choose the same nominee in 2028 who lost in 2024.
Harris, for his part, has also told associates that he wants to keep his options open. If he doesn’t run for president again, some say he could easily run for governor of California.
Gavin Newsom
Long before Biden left the race, the governor of California was touting himself as a possible nominee if the president decided not to run again.
In many ways, he became a cover for Democrats against Trump.
Throughout the Biden administration, Newsom has clashed with Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, something that pleased Democrats who wanted the president to slap the GOP in the face.
“He squandered the fight and now you have a party that needs a shot in the arm,” said a second Democratic strategist.
Newsom will be able to raise money, he is nationally known and he leads the most populous Democratic state.
He is positioning himself as part of the anti-Trump movement, which is already calling for a special session of the California Legislature “to protect California’s values and fundamental rights in the face of the Trump administration.”
Can a California Democrat win the presidential election? That has never happened in US history, and many Democrats have their doubts.
But Newsom certainly looks like a leading candidate in 2028.
Gretchen Whitmer
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has long been seen as a strong candidate for president.
There are some Democrats who wish there had been an open race for the nomination this cycle, and think Whitmer might have been a stronger candidate.
In 2028, Whitmer will face questions about gender due to the defeat of Harris in 2024 and Hillary Clinton in 2016 against Trump.
“The next nominee is always a referendum on the last,” said Democratic Strategist Christy Setzer.
“I think Harris ran a better race than anyone could have asked for, [but] the obvious takeaway will be that we should not run a woman of color or a woman at all. It’s difficult, but I don’t see people having another investigation.”
Mr. Whitmer’s fans point out that the governor of Michigan is proof that a Democrat can not only win a “blue” contest but has a successful program.
Whitmer was a top contender to be Biden’s running mate in 2020, and since then his political star has risen.
He went on to raise millions of dollars for his super PAC, Fight Like Hell PAC, according to the campaign finance agency.
“He’s the real deal,” said one Democrat who spoke to him in recent months.
Josh Shapiro
The governor of Pennsylvania, Mr. Josh Shapiro, left the Democratic party losing the White House firmly, even though Mr. Harris lost his state.
He was seen by many as the second choice to be Harris’ vice president after Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and there will be questions ahead about whether he would have made a difference in the blue wall districts.
“We’ll never know how it would have turned out, but he’s got a lot of attention,” said one Democratic donor. “And I know many of us think that he has what it takes to one day compete for the highest office. He has a certain gravitas. “
Shapiro maintains a strong reputation in his district as he grows his national profile.
But the poll shows that he still has work to do in building his name ID. A poll conducted by Emerson this week showed that three percent of those polled said they would support him.
Pete Buttigieg
Ever since he ran for president in 2020, Secretary of State Pete Buttigieg has been someone Democrats have called the future of the party.
Although Biden’s 42-year tenure as secretary of state has been uneventful, Democrat after Democrat has said he is arguably the party’s best spokesman since former President Obama.
Free in front of large crowds and again on Fox News, something that pleases Democrats who say the party needs to do more to win over the working-class men who have flocked to Trump. Currently, he is polling again ahead of most of the Democratic pack.
JB Pritzker
After Biden’s disastrous debate in June, the Governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker was one of many Democrats who thought he could appeal the nomination in the first open court at the convention, which was held in Chicago, the home of the governor of Illinois.
An heir to the Hyatt Hotel chain, Pritzker could easily build his campaign coffers — and quickly.
He also has a string of legislative achievements that could please Democrats.
They signed a law raising the minimum wage to $15 in the state. He also signed several reproductive rights bills.
Along with Governor Jared Polis of Colorado, he helped form a coalition of Democratic governors called Governors Safeguarding Democracy.
Democrats have also applauded the way he went after Trump the day after he was elected earlier this month.
“To anyone who wants to come, take away the freedom and opportunity and dignity of Illinoisans, I remind you that a happy soldier is still a soldier,” he said. “You come to fight for my people, you come to me.”
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
When Democrats talk about the future of the party, the name of the 35-year-old New York congresswoman always comes up.
Democrats have long been impressed by Ocasio-Cortez’s ability to “cut through the BS and tell it like it is,” a second Democratic strategist said.
“He’s the guy who can cut through the noise and not talk like Washington.”
Democrats say Ocasio-Cortez would be a magnet for young voters and would have little trouble using social media, podcasts and other online tools, as she has since being elected to Congress in 2018.
While Ocasio-Cortez was previously aligned with progressives including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has since endorsed other centrist candidates.
However, some Democrats say he still represents a left-leaning party for some voters, something that could hurt him if he pursues a higher office.
“He and ‘the team’ started pushing harder, faster,” the first expert said. “DC doesn’t work like that. And our party does not work like that. We need to go back to basics. “
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