If you, like myself, have been desperately missing Kamala HQ on your timeline, then I have some welcome news for you about a certain former presidential candidate’s plans for 2028.
Kamala Harris has been lying low since her defeat in the presidential election earlier this month (yes, that was this month), unwinding with family and spending time in Hawaii after Donald Trump’s victory. However, sources are saying the Democratic candidate is planning some form of political comeback as she prepares to head back to the nation’s capital. According to five people in the Harris inner circle (per Politico), the originator of the coconut tree meme is planning to run for president again in 2028.
That’s right, after surviving a historic campaign and enduring a truly nightmarish opponent, Harris is reportedly considering whether a second presidential race might be in her future. She’s told her senior aides to “keep her options open” while confirming she “is staying in the fight.” It’s the same sentiment she shared during her stirring concession speech (when we collectively thought all hope was lost), but Harris is apparently considering other post-election maneuvers aside from the presidency.
Politico reports that, if a second race to the White House isn’t viable, she may run for governor in her home state of California in two years. That election cycle would coincide with the end of current governor Gavin Newsom’s term, leaving room for Harris to launch a campaign to succeed him. “She doesn’t have to decide if she wants to run for something again in the next six months,” one former Harris campaign aide told Politico. While these are just rumblings, the aides said the more immediate decision Harris must make is when to speak out against Trump and reassert her place in the Democratic Party.
Harris will be present at the election certification and Trump’s inauguration (sure to be a hellish day), which are both events where “there will be a desire to hear her voice.” While some are excited by the prospect of a second Harris presidential campaign, not all aides thought the idea had legs. “I can’t conceivably imagine the party turning to her a second time,” one Democratic strategist said. Regardless, sources say that Harris will deliberate on her post-election options with her family over the winter holiday season.
News of Harris’ potential second bid for the White House comes amid a relatively quiet past few weeks for the former candidate. Since losing the election, Harris has been the subject of gratitude in devastating reflections shared by the likes of Barbara Streisand, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton, while her step-daughter, Ella Rose Emhoff, was forced to respond to rumors she had a mental breakdown.
Elsewhere, there’s been chatter about how much certain celebrities, including Oprah, were paid to be involved in the campaign, and false conspiracy theories suggesting that the Democratic Party sought to install Harris as president despite the outcome of the election.
Aside from this — and Harris’ post-election appearance with Joe Biden on Veteran’s Day — the vice president has remained quietly under the radar. The optimist in me likes to think this near-silence is in preparation for something big, but given the state of US politics, I wouldn’t blame Harris if she ditched Washington altogether and simply embraced the meme queen that she is.