As former Vice President Kamala Harris considers running in California’s gubernatorial race, many of her powerful and longtime national supporters, who helped bolster her to national stardom six years ago, tell ABC News they are lukewarm on a potential 2028 presidential run.
“I think she’s done at the top of the ticket.” said one donor, who like several other donors, spoke with ABC News on the condition of anonymity because they are still actively involved in Democratic party fundraising. He added, “I think the country will not have moved in a progressive direction during that time, it will have become more conservative.”
The donor was one of the over 20 donors that ABC News spoke with from Harris’ 2019 National Finance Committee who supported Harris as a junior senator, during the most crowded Democratic presidential race in history, and remained unified during her 2024 bid.
The support Harris spent years cultivating faces deep fissures.
Another donor, Areva Martin, who has known Harris since college, said Harris has a history of quieting the doubters.
“She’s proven she has staying power. When people think she can’t recover she’s proven her ability to do so,” Martin told ABC News.
Others were noncommittal, feeling it was too early to consider anyone running for president.
“I don’t know if I would get involved at this point even if God were running. … I think it’s going to be tough for any Democrat to raise any money. There is little enthusiasm,” Democratic fundraiser Michael Kempner told ABC News.
Case for Harris running for governor
Nearly every member of Harris’ 2019 National Finance Committee who spoke with ABC News backed her for a gubernatorial run.
Harris’ aides previously told ABC News she will make a decision by the end of summer. Some supporters see a successful Harris bid for governor in 2026 as a dealbreaker to run for president in 2028, because of the short window between a gubernatorial inauguration and a potential presidential launch.
Bakari Sellers, former co-chair of Harris’ 2020 campaign, said, “If she wants to run for governor, I don’t think the Katie Porter’s of the world are formidable. I think if she wants to run for president, she has to ask: is the country ready for her? I don’t know the answer to that. … a lot of things are going to change in the next three and a half years.”
Others avoided commenting about a potential 2028 run, citing timing, but expressed confidence in a Harris gubernatorial run.
“My opinion and my dedication to her hasn’t changed one iota. I believe she’s one of the most talented, brilliant, kind, empathic people that I have met in all my time in politics,” lawyer Judith Barnett told ABC News.
The lifetime Democratic donor who said she has known Harris for nearly a decade added, “I would think running for governor, running the 5th largest economy in the world, would be a good move. It’s not my decision … it’s all hers. But I think it’s a wonderful step,” Barnett said.
Asif Mahmood, who led Asian outreach for Harris’ 2019 campaign, said Harris could follow in another Californian’s footsteps.
“Reagan ran for president. He lost, came back to California, served his state as governor, went back and ran for president and won twice,” said Mahmood, who was also Hillary Clinton’s deputy national finance chair.
Multiple donors pointed out that if Harris were to win a gubernatorial race, she’d make history. She’d be the first Asian American woman and the first Black woman to be governor of any state.
Only one donor who spoke with ABC News said he was not enthusiastic about supporting Harris for governor.
“If she even thinks of running for president, it will be very bad. If she even puts feelers out it will be embarrassing,” he said, adding, he would need to be convinced to write big checks for her for any race.
He claimed donors struggled after Harris’ presidential loss to get answers from staffers, “I don’t want to deal with her campaign apparatus.”
Democrats vs Democrats
Some donors who spoke with ABC News believe the lack of consensus over Harris says more about Democrats than it does about her.
“The Democratic party is well known for killing their losers and finding someone else,” said one donor.
“I think losing to Donald Trump is the cardinal sin of the Democratic party. The left and people that supported her don’t appear to be trying to articulate that this loss was narrow and her ideas were popular,” said one loyalist.
“It’s tough for anyone to come back from a loss and run again. Trump is, of course, an exception. In my opinion, I don’t think she would get significant support as a presidential nominee.” Dr. Manan Trivedi, a donor and former candidate for Pennsylvania’s 6th congressional district, told ABC News.
Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, William Henry Harrison, Grover Cleveland, Richard Nixon, Trump were all presidential nominees who lost before winning a general election. Grover Cleveland was the only Democrat to accomplish the feat.
Some donors were skeptical of Harris joining that list.
“If Kamala wanted to be president of the United States, she needed to position herself as the leader of the resistance. Not only has she not done that but no other leader has pushed themselves forward,” said one donor.
Montgomery County Commissioner Neil Makhija met Harris during her 2010 attorney general run and said he believes Democrats have time to better position themselves for a successful presidential run.
“I think she has the luxury of not having to dive into the political fray during this time. By focusing on the human impact of what this administration is doing. It could draw on her strength as an empathetic leader. It could make a difference in these interim years,” Makhija told ABC News.
Another donor said Democrats need to be strategic.
“I want to win. I am not supporting a woman, a Black person, or a gay person. I am supporting the non-threatening white dude. Even if a woman were the best candidate, I would have a hard time until it became really clear that there is a real pathway,” said one female donor.
Democratic bundler Alex Heckler said he has remained a big fan of Harris’ but fears Democrats are playing a defensive game.
While he says he’s happy with the new party chair, he says, “Democrats over-correct. Three white men led the votes for party chair – it’s ridiculous. We can’t help ourselves. I struggle being a Democrat these days.”
“Democrats are reactionary – they think two women lost – we can’t put a woman up again,” Heckler said.
Activist Tina Duryea said she’s also frustrated with the party.
“She [Harris] could run on: ‘look how miserable everything is now you could have had me’ that could be a very powerful message. I don’t have a lot of tolerance for people living in fear. Democrats overthink things,” Duryea told ABC News. She said she’s “100% behind” any decision Harris makes.
Rapidly changing political landscape
Like any voter, donors change their minds about politics. Multiple did during the course of this reporting.
Two weeks ago, one prominent donor said, “I don’t think she has it in her,” adding he believed the next democratic nominee “will be one of the governors.”
But the donor changed his mind after Harris’ recent appearances. “Putting your heart and soul into an election is devastating. Watching her [Harris] over the last few weeks, she seems to be getting her legs back. She’s been out there speaking,” the donor said.
He added, “If the world is falling apart economically and geopolitically and she gets a head start on fundraising, with her name recognition and leadership, she could easily become the frontrunner and win.”
Others acknowledged their positions could change.
California donor Mark Buell said he is watching how California’s gubernatorial and the presidential races unfold before he publicly endorses anyone.
“I’ve learned my lesson, you have to wait to be able to see the full landscape. …We have many issues in this country. If I have to hold my nose to vote for a Democratic who I don’t like but think would win – I would. It’s not who my favorite is or who I love.”
Another donor cited a possible fundamental change in American democracy, led by Trump’s actions.
“I am very reluctant to back a horse. Because I’m not even sure we’re horse racing anymore,” he said.
“Are we going to have an election in 2028? When he [Trump] jokes about it, I don’t know if he’s joking. But I think she would be great. I still think she would have been great,” donor Mara Cohen told ABC News.
Colorado DNC delegate Wanda James expressed frustration watching Harris’ narrative flip, arguing it could easily flip back.
“On Nov.3, we were calling her campaign flawless,” James told ABC News. “Maybe America needs to be broken so someone can fix it. I don’t know who will arise, maybe it will be someone no one suspected, but if the election was happening tomorrow I would still be with Kamala.”
Like several other donors, Janni Lehrer-Stein, a longtime Harris donor and disability advocate, said she has seen Harris multiple times since the election, and has not received any indication as to what she plans to do in the future, but said, “Kamala Harris is going to lead us toward justice and a better life for everyone. That’s the reason I’ll support her in whatever direction she takes.”
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