The Democratic Party is in dire straits after suffering catastrophic losses last November, and it doesn't look like Democrats have learned any kind of a lesson. Polls have been coming out since just days after former Vice President Kamala Harris lost to President Donald Trump, and while she leads the pack for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, many Democratic primary voters are still too unsure. While 2028 is a long time from now, there are still some names making the lists.
On Saturday, the Washington Post put together a list of "The 12 Democrats who make the most sense for 2028." It begins by taking a dig at Trump, but the problems the Democratic Party is facing still can't be ignored.
As Aaron Blake's analysis begins:
Democrats are adrift.
The 2024 election was closer than many people realize — and a lot closer than President Donald Trump claims. But the blue team is acting like one that got destroyed and has no idea what to do next.
Democrats have no real message, most notably on the seemingly ripe issue of Trump pardoning people who assaulted police on Jan. 6, 2021. They’re in the midst of awkwardly caving to the right on immigration.
The top 12 Democrats include Governors Tim Walz (MN), Josh Stein (NC), Andy Beshear (KY), Gavin Newsom (CA), Wes Moore (MD), Gretchen Whitmer (MI) and Josh Shapiro (PA), and Senators Raphael Warnock (GA), Ruben Gallego (AZ), and John Fetterman (PA), along with Harris and former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
While Walz is last on the list, his placement makes no sense for any spot. He did nothing to help the Democratic ticket last November, and problems plagued him ever since Harris announced him as her running mate, mostly, but not solely, to do with concerns about stolen valor. Trump even won Walz's home county in Minnesota this time, with Harris not exactly winning this – or other blue states – by much.
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Beshear was considered a vice presidential contender when Harris was installed as the Democratic nominee. He managed to win reelection in Kentucky back in 2023, a pretty red state. Blake even mentions this in his blurb, writing in part, "Clearly the best thing for Beshear would have been being chosen as Harris’s running mate, having them win, and getting his foot in the door at the White House."
Beshear won in part by focusing on abortion, which included targeting his Republican opponent, former Attorney General Daniel Cameron, on the issue. That issue again came up during the 2024 election, when Beshear wished rape upon now Vice President JD Vance's family members around the time of last August's DNC, only to whine he never did so. He even laughed it off and tripled down on such comments.
"I mean, JD Vance calls pregnancy resulting from rape 'inconvenient,'" Beshear had claimed, going for a line from several years prior that Vance has disputed. Beshear then turned the attention on himself, though, when he added, "Make him go through this!"
DISGUSTING: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear wishes for a member of JD Vance's family to become pregnant due to rape.
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) August 20, 2024
"Make him go through this." pic.twitter.com/y9e82YEfHe
Although Newsom is not as high on the list as he might once have been, that he's still in the top 10 is befuddling. The California fires have raged for weeks now, and the Democratic governor – as well as most others in the state – has responded by further politicizing the issue and playing the blame game. This has especially been the case with Trump, including toward the end of the president's first term. Newsom's been the subject of several recall efforts, including a new one over his (mis)handling of the fires.
Sure enough, Blake's blurb focused on the fires. "The California governor’s stock could drop amid wildfires that have proved a nightmare for state and local officials. He’s a gifted messenger and clearly ambitious, but it’s doubtful Democrats will think a slick Californian is the answer to the ground they lost in 2024 on cultural issues," he wrote.
Yes, Newsom is indeed "clearly ambitious," but that may almost make him look worse.
Anything to do with Fetterman is always an interesting conversation, and Blake appears to acknowledge this, raising key questions about the future of the Democratic Party:
The freshman senator from Pennsylvania overcame a stroke that left him struggling to speak in 2022 and crippling depression to emerge as one of the most interesting senators. While he was reputed as a liberal, he’s carved out a significant independent streak as a senator. He recently went on Joe Rogan’s podcast. He’s encouraged his party to “chill” about Trump and said he’s not “rooting against” the president, even going to Mar-a-Lago. That might not be what Democratic primary voters are looking for, but Fetterman is doing interesting things and could seemingly make an argument for how the party should talk to Trump voters. Democrats could certainly look at his large personality and willingness to challenge their internal status quo as a plus.
Not mentioned are his warnings to fellow Democrats about how Trump was going to win Pennsylvania – the most important of the swing states, with 19 electoral votes – which he, in fact, did. He's also not been afraid to speak out against Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and her hold over the party.
Fetterman is moderate enough, on some things. He also, however, joined all of his fellow Democratic senators last week in voting against legislation that would protect babies born alive from abortion and took to X to double down on his pro-abortion stance.
It's also not clear he has had any ambitions about running for such a high office.
That Harris comes in as fourth is shocking and embarrassing in a way, especially since she has polled at the top of Democratic primary voters' minds for 2028. That being said, she may also just be the freshest of mind for voters. She also potentially may want to run for California governor in 2026, as Newsom is term-limited.
Still, Blake tries to make excuses for this horrible candidate who has yet to win a single primary vote and her party, similar to how he began by going after Trump:
Her loss was a disappointment to her party, but it’s not clear how much better Democrats could have done, given the environment. She wasn’t an unpopular candidate, and she in fact overcame many early fears that she would be. But favorable numbers might not tell the whole story, and you could forgive Democrats for not wanting to line up behind her again. The big question now is whether she’ll run for California governor in 2026 — which would probably preclude a 2028 bid.
The third and second names are horrible choices for the country. Buttigieg wasn't exactly qualified to even be Secretary of Transportation, yet he was confirmed regardless. His department looked like so many others during the Biden-Harris administration and wasn't exactly well run or focused on the right issues. He was also out on paternity leave at the height of the supply chain crisis early on in President Joe Biden's term. He may have seemed likable enough during his 2020 run for president but became less so the more we got to know him.
Blake clearly disagrees, though he does mention Buttigieg may run for governor in 2026:
The former transportation secretary is as gifted a surrogate as Democrats have and is studied at speaking to Trump voters (often on Fox News). If Democrats internalize the idea that they need someone who can take their message to all corners of the country — a common theme on this list — but also be comfortable with pretty much any subject matter, he makes a lot of sense. For now, keep an eye on whether he runs for Michigan governor in 2026.
Speaking of the current governor of Michigan, Whitmer, who is term-limited, she has her own baggage. Shortly before the 2024 election, she was shown filming a video clip mocking the Eucharist, though she laughably claimed she was doing no such thing.
Not only does Blake make no mention of this, he yet again makes excuses for any difficulties she has faced or might face:
The Michigan governor’s stock probably suffered in the 2024 election, through no fault of her own. Given Democrats have now lost to Trump twice with the only two female nominees they’ve ever run — and some wondered whether sexism is to blame — it seems likely they’ll be skittish about putting up another one for the foreseeable future (rightly or wrongly). But Whitmer’s qualifications are also some of the most substantial on this list. And because she’s term-limited, she’ll be out of a job come 2027.
Mocking Catholics, which she already does enough with her obsessive pro-abortion attitude, is very much Whitmer's own fault. Plus, for all his crying about how her "stock probably suffered," she's still number two.
That brings us to the top pick: Shapiro, who appeared to come quite close to being Harris' running mate and seemed like a done deal at one point. There are reports that the popular and moderate (enough) governor didn't want to leave the governor's mansion to be somebody's number two and that he had a bad interview. Nevertheless, it can't be ignored that antisemitism in the Democratic Party could have played a factor. Even before any kind of an announcement was made, progressives freaked out over Shapiro and wrote letters demanding Harris go with someone else, like Walz, which she ultimately did.
Shockingly, or perhaps not, considering what he's written about other picks, Blake doesn't even reference any of that [emphasis original]:
More than a few Democrats have asked “what if” — what if Harris had picked the Pennsylvania governor instead of Walz? It’s doubtful any running mate would have made that much of a difference, and it’s not like Walz was a clear liability. But it’s easy to see Democrats longing for someone with Shapiro’s demonstrated political talents, messaging capabilities and crossover appeal. And while his often sounding a lot like Obama is kind of funny, that might be an asset now. Nostalgia is a powerful thing, especially when it recalls the Democrats’ best days of the 21st century.
Of course, Walz "was a clear liability," and claiming otherwise is a losing attitude for Democrats that looks to continue. When it comes to this top pick, though, Shapiro would potentially be the most frightening prospect for Republicans, but Democrats first must deal with the antisemitism and misandry in their own party.
