Kamala Harris, the former Vice President of the United States and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, made the clearest sign yet that she may, in fact, again seek the presidency in 2028.
“I might. I’m thinking about it,” Harris said on Friday during a sit-down with the Rev. Al Sharpton for the civil rights leader’s annual National Action Network Convention in New York City.
Harris, who devastatingly lost the 2024 election to now-President Donald Trump, appeared to test an early campaign pitch as to why she would be best suited to succeed her former opponent in the White House.
“I served for four years, being a heartbeat away from the presidency of the United States,” said America’s first female, first Black, and first South Asian Vice President of the United States. “I spent hours in my West Wing office, footsteps away from the Oval Office. I spent countless hours…in the Situation Room. I know what the job is, and I know what it requires.”
Harris, who has been traveling the country promoting her memoir “107 Days,” which details her historic run for president, since its September 2025 release, said she’s learned from her conversations with Americans, particularly those in the South, that the “status quo is not working.”
“[It] hasn’t been working for a lot of people for a long time. And part of the issue is the need to get rid of some of the bureaucracy in government and to understand that the people…they don’t want process. They want progress,” she said. “That’s the work that needs to be done.”
The former White House contender emphasized that any presidential candidate must not simply want to occupy the office, but be squarely focused on the people who elect them.
“The American people have a right to expect that anyone who wants to run for office and be a leader, that it can’t be about themselves, and what they want for themselves. It has got to be about the American people,” Harris explained. “I am thinking about it in the context of, then, you know, is who and where and how can the best job be done for the American people. That’s how I’m thinking about it.”
The former Vice President added, “I’ll keep you posted.”
Some in Democratic circles have moved past Harris as the party’s standard-bearer since her 2024 loss. They point to her loss as a sign that the country simply is not ready to elect a woman, or, more pointedly, a Black woman. Others say another chance at the top of the ticket isn’t out of the realm of possibility for Harris. Controversial actions by President Trump often lead to clips of Harris forewarning voters in 2024 with variations of “She told you so.” Insiders also point out that, to date, Harris, who has strong name ID among Americans, has earned the most votes (75 million) of any presidential candidate in U.S. history, aside from her former boss, President Joe Biden, and Trump.
Harris also remains incredibly popular among Black voters, who overwhelmingly prefer her over other potential 2028 candidates, as evidenced by Friday’s NAN convention, where attendees often reveled in Harris with thunderous applause. One attendee interjected, “Run it back!” during Harris’s remarks while discussing the Trump administration, suggesting a redo of the 2024 election.
The support of Black voters, especially Black women — 92% of whom voted for Harris in 2024 — will be crucial to any Democratic candidate in 2028. In 2024, President Biden urged the Democratic National Committee to change its primary election calendar to make South Carolina, where Black voters have an outsized influence, the first primary state. Doing so could give Harris an early boost in the 2028 primary contest.
However, any run again for the White House will be far more challenging for Harris than in 2024, when she faced no primary challengers. A crowded field of Democrats is expected in 2028. Rumored contenders include: California Governor Gavin Newsom, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, U.S. Senator Cory Booker, Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Congressman Ro Khanna, and U.S. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
