Celebrity

Gavin Newsom Says He Won't Run For President In 2028 If Kamala Harris Does: 'I Wouldn't Do That To Her'

September 18, 2026 by Julia DeKorte
shefinds | Celebrity
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Suspected presidential hopefully Gavin Newsom just admitted that he won’t be running for president in 2028 if Kamala Harris has any interest in doing so. Both native Californians have been names of interest when it comes to the 2028 presidential election, but according to Newsom, there won’t be a debate between them. Keep reading for more information.

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Gavin Newsom Won't Run For President If Kamala Harris Does

During an interview as part of CNN's new "Out of Office" series, Newsom addressed what it would take for him to run for president. Speaking to Jake Tapper, Newsom explained that if Kamala Harris decided to run for president, he would take his name off the ticket. "I don't know if she runs, but we'll see," the San Francisco Democrat said.

"I wouldn't run if she ran," he continued. "Why would I? I wouldn't do that to her. I wouldn't do it to me... I won't waste everyone's time. Who needs that?"

At Tapper's stunned reaction, Newsom elaborated. "First of all, electorally it’s a gift from God for everybody else," he said. "They’d enjoy the hell out of it. Mutual assured destruction. It services no greater good. Why would I do this if I wasn’t trying to serve some greater good? There would be no upside whatsoever."

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When Tapper pointed out that Harris has run for president on two different occasions, first in 2019 and again in 2024, and lost on both attempts, Newsom conceded. "That would be the case you’d make," he admitted. "Pretty good one, actually. That’s objectively true. But I know what that means. I know her base of supporters, I know her friends, the [Venn] diagram on that is just pure crossover … I wouldn’t do that to people. I wouldn’t put them in that position … Every other Democrat is praying for that, and every other Republican is gonna pray for that. And that’s just not gonna happen."

After all, Newsom hasn't even fully decided if he's going to run for president. "I have no experience in this process, so I’m going through it." Tapper pointed out that many Democrats called for Newsom to run against Joe Biden back in 2024, but Newsom admitted he "wasn't ready" at the time.

"First of all, I wouldn’t do that," he said, of running against Biden. "And second, if I did, I would have gotten crushed because I didn’t have a why. You don’t have big enough why, then you don’t belong there."

"It's shocking how many presidential candidates can’t answer their why," he added. "Like, shocking... you’ve got to have a big enough why."

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Freelance Writer

Julia DeKorte is a New York-based writer. A graduate of the Columbia Publishing Course, Julia covers celebrity and brand news for SheFinds, reviews toys and games for People of Play, and loves cooking for her family, walking her dogs, and running outside, preferably in view of the ocean. Contact Julia at julia@shefinds.com.