Looking ahead to the 2028 presidential campaign, it appears one party is favoring a fresh face while the other wants a do-over from last time. A new Harvard-Harris survey of registered voters finds Vice President JD Vance and former Vice President Kamala Harris are the preferred candidates for 2028 by their respective parties. Among Republicans, Vance is at 48 percent, followed by Donald Trump Jr. at 18 percent and Marco Rubio at 16 percent. For Democrats, Harris is the choice of 50 percent, followed by Gavin Newsom at 22 percent, with all others in single digits.
Vance's popularity among GOP voters is not surprising, given his high approval ratings and position as President Trump's right-hand man. But Harris' strong lead among Democrats is a bit perplexing, after her decisive loss to Donald Trump in 2024. Harris lost 31 states and the popular vote, putting up the weakest showing by a Democrat presidential nominee in decades. And yet she has a wide lead on Newsom, whose own stumbles on the national stage have hurt his momentum.
Not everyone in the political world is surprised by Harris' position in the 2028 pecking order. "I think Kamala is just going to try to convince herself that her loss is more at the feet of Joe Biden, and that it wasn't her fault," says Luke Macias, political consultant and podcast host. "And therefore she thinks if she jumps in in a slightly different environment, she might be able to be much more popular."
"You have to remember that Democrats live in a bit of a self-created fantasy," Macias continues. "So I'm not gonna be surprised if Kamala convinces herself that she is not the problem, and that Joe Biden is in her rearview mirror and she has a clear path now."
Harris is clearly considering a run and probably reading these polls. She recently told Rev. Al Sharpton at a National Action Network event, "I might, I'm thinking about it," when asked if she was running for president in '28.
While Harris would appear to be an easy target for Republicans if she gets the nomination in 2028, Macias warns against overconfidence regardless of what the matchup is. "Republicans definitely have a stronger mantle of candidates moving forward," he says. "But just know that it is going to be a real battle, because the left fully intends to leave it all on the field. They want the power back, and they're willing to do whatever they can to get it."
Photo: Nicole Mastrogiannis