There doesn’t seem to be a lot of California dreamin’ of former Vice President Kamala Harris.
A plurality of Golden State “policy influencers” indicated a blasé attitude toward the possibility of Harris vying for governor in 2026, when incumbent Democrat Gavin Newsom is barred from running again due to term limits.
When asked about a potential Harris run, 36% said they were “indifferent” to the possibility, while 22% described themselves as “mostly excited,” 20% said they were “irritated” and 4% said they were “outraged,” according to a survey by Politico and UC Berkeley’s Citrin Center.
Kamala Harris has not officially declared her candidacy in her home state, but has vowed to remain active in politics since losing to Trump in the 2024 election. Getty Images for BETMovers and shakers sampled included state and federal lawmakers and staffers, including subscribers to Politico’s news products such as California Playbook, POLITICO Pro in California and California Climate.
Registered voters were more fired up about the former San Francisco district attorney, senator, and vice president taking over in Sacramento, the poll found.
Among Democrats, 41% said they’d be “most excited” if Harris, 60, were to run, while 33% indicated they’d be “joyful” and about a quarter were indifferent.
Minority voters’ views were mixed, with 35% of black voters saying they’d be “joyful” about Harris running and another 38% said they’d be “mostly excited.”
Meanwhile, 19% of Latino voters said they were feeling” hopeless” about Harris potentially running and 19% of Asian voters indicated they were “irritated” by the possibility,” the poll found. Harris has been guarded about her plans and has largely kept a low public profile since her electoral dubbing by President Trump last November. However, she is widely believed to be considering either a 2026 gubernatorial run or a bid for the presidency in 2028.
After losing to Trump, 78, Harris publicly declared that she will “stay in the fight” and won’t “go quietly into the night.”
For the most part, she has been quiet, making only occasional speeches and social media posts.
Thirty-six percent of the policy influencers said they felt “indifferent” about Harris running for governor. AFP via Getty Images“Today in every state across our nation, Americans are standing up to the administration as they implement Project 2025 at full speed,” she wrote on X earlier this month following Trump’s April 2 “Liberation Day” tariff announcement.
While Harris has stayed away from the limelight, her former running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, has held town halls across the country. in a bid to gin up opposition against Trump.
The poll sampled 718 California influencers and 1,025 registered voters via the TrueDot.ai platform April 1-14. The registered voter sample had a margin of error of plus-or-minus 5 percentage points.
