Overview
- In a CBS Sunday Morning interview, Gavin Newsom said he would give “serious thought” to a White House bid after the 2026 midterms and added that “fate will determine” any decision.
- The two-term governor is term-limited in January 2027 and has been testing national appeal with trips to battlegrounds, including a July stop in South Carolina.
- Newsom’s near-term focus is Proposition 50, a measure to temporarily redraw California’s U.S. House districts to favor Democrats as a counter to Republican-led redistricting in other states.
- The Justice Department said it will deploy monitors for California’s special election, a move Newsom criticized as intimidation while DOJ said it aims to ensure transparency and compliance with federal law.
- Other Democrats, including Kamala Harris, are signaling interest in 2028, and recent polling places Newsom among leading prospects as he intensifies his attacks on President Trump, calling him an “invasive species” and a “wrecking ball.”