Overview

• Harris is halfway through the deadline she set in spring to choose between a 2026 gubernatorial run and a 2028 presidential campaign
• A UC Irvine poll gives her 24% in the Democratic governor primary and a 41–29 lead over a generic Republican but shows large undecided blocs
• Echelon Insight’s July Omnibus survey places Harris atop an early 2028 Democratic field at 26%, leading Pete Buttigieg and Gavin Newsom by roughly 15 points
• An Emerson College ballot test contradicts that edge by showing Buttigieg at 16% and Harris at 13%, underscoring volatility among early primary voters
• Advisers caution that unresolved questions about her statewide agenda and last-minute undecided voters could undermine her in either race