2028 Primary: Gavin Newsom to Test Presidential Waters in Rural South Carolina
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is wasting no time in testing the waters for a presidential run in 2028, planning a visit next week to rural South Carolina, hoping to find a warm reception among poor, black voters.
Newsom’s theme will be a shared experience of natural disasters — though he has proven inept at managing them in his own state, whether leaving the country during blizzards or failing to provide water during fires.
Politicoreported Thursday:
The South Carolina Democratic Party — which announced the trip Thursday — is marketing the series of meet-and-greets as an opportunity for the governor to meet with communities impacted by natural disasters and “speak to the urgent need for federal support and investment” in the wake of Hurricane Helene and the Los Angeles wildfires.
Newsom traveled to the state in January 2024 to stump for former President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in the run-up to the presidential election. He received a lukewarm reception from some voters skeptical of his liberal reputation, POLITICO reported at the time.
South Carolina is an early primary state in both parties, and it was crucial to Joe Biden’s nomination in 2020. While Biden had performed poorly in Iowa and Net Hampshire, an endorsement from Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) helped him win the Palmetto State, and showed he had the support of black voters. Other candidates soon dropped out of the race. In 2024, Democrats made South Carolina the first state in their primary cycle.
Newsom is likely hoping to make inroads with black voters in impoverished parts of the state. The Los Angeles Timesreported that Newsom’s aides insisted he is simply traveling to help Democrats campaign toward the 2026 midterm elections.
However, there is not a single competitive congressional district in South Carolina at the moment, according to the Cook Political Report, whose ratings are closely watched.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of Trump 2.0: The Most Dramatic ‘First 100 Days’ in Presidential History, available for Amazon Kindle. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
