Democrats are reportedly becoming obsessed with California Gov. Gavin Newsom as 2028 slowly but surely inches ever closer.
According to Democrat strategist Jamal Simmons, he is all anybody on the left can talk about these days.
Newsom takes the lead in a new 2028 Democratic primary Emerson poll, jumping 12%. pic.twitter.com/FjRQHzQPwp
— News Now (@NewsNowUS) August 29, 2025
The key word here is “he,” because all they seem to care about is him and his vibes, not his disastrous policies.
“They [everyday leftist voters] ask me two questions: ‘Do you think he can win?’ And, ‘Do you think he can be the guy?’” Simmons told The Hill.
“No one has ever asked me a single policy question about him. A lot of Democrats think this might be the time for a more traditional choice, and Newsom fits the bill. They just want a winner. They have this mindset of, ‘Let’s just win, and we’ll sort out the politics later,'” he added.
The Hill notes that Newsom “is winning hearts” on the left by behaving like a complete jackass and, as an example, emulating President Donald Trump’s tweeting style for attention:
HUGE NEWS FOR “MY GUYS AND GALS”!!! NEWSOM UNIVERSITY IS OPENING VERY SOON. ENROLLMENT IS ALREADY THROUGH THE ROOF. EVERYBODY WANTS IN (EVEN THE LOSERS) BUT ONLY THE SMARTEST, MOST TALENTED STUDENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED (NO LOW IQ DING-DONGS LIKE JD “JUST DANCE” VANCE OR LAURA “LOW… pic.twitter.com/Zunmq00sPq
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) September 4, 2025
“What the governor has been doing lately, particularly on social media, it’s been provocative,” fellow Democrat strategist Basil Smikle said. “It matches the president’s own style, and I don’t think there were a lot of prominent Democrats who were good at that.”
“I think it has made a difference. It has elevated him in a way that shows some deftness and thoughtfulness about his politics. And voters want a fighter,” he added.
According to Democrat strategist Garry South, who previously worked for Newsom, the governor is relishing in Democrat attention because “he’s the first … to really step out of the box and start giving Trump a taste of his medicine.”
“Thank God a Democrat finally figured out how to go after him,” South added.
This upswing in his popularity comes after several years of California voters blaming him for homelessness, rising crime, and, of course, the Palisades Fire.
A recently as last spring, his statewide poll numbers were in the dump. But ever since he started emulating Trump on social media, his favorability has skyrocketed from 38 percent in early June to 56 percent a month later.
Even Democrats outside of California are talking about Newsom.
During a fundraiser in New York last month for a congressional Democrat, everybody was talking about Newsom, not the congressional candidate.
“He wasn’t in the room, and we were all talking about him,” a donor who attended the fundraiser said. “Everyone was completely captivated. He’s all people in the room wanted to talk about.”
“We’re obsessed with him because there really is no one else,” another donor said. “No one wants to say that out loud, but it’s true.”
Meaning they have nobody else on the left who has a chance in hell of winning on the national level. While there are plenty of popular Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, they’re too radical for most mainstream Americans.
AOC has no popularity outside of coastal liberal enclaves. They would have to astroturf her popularity to try to sucker in people who base their voting decisions on consensus and herd mentality, and we saw how well that worked out with Kamala. https://t.co/gl0JhenJ5u
— Possum Reviews (@ReviewsPossum) November 13, 2024
As for Republicans like veteran GOP strategist Susan Del Percio, they have their doubts about even Newsom’s electability.
She told The Hill that she believes that the attention he’s currently drumming up with his shtick “doesn’t buy him much.”
‘”It just buys him a lot of goodwill for today,” she said. “Right now, it just looks like he’s got this one act. It’s a good act, too, don’t get me wrong. It just won’t get him to where he needs to go as a presidential candidate.”
But Simmons argued that he does at least have a “head start” against others because of his record on “progressive” issues like gay marriage and climate change.
“For Democrats who will vote in a primary, he’s got real bona fides,” Simmons stressed. “But for now, people are fascinated by his courage and his charisma and they’re giving him a chance. There’s a lot of room for other cars to take the lead in the race, but so far, he seems to be the lead car.”
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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