California Gov. Gavin Newsom told Politico that he will not run for president in 2024, even if President Joe Biden decides to not seek re-election.
Newsom said he “told everyone in the White House, from the chief of staff to the first lady,” that he will not primary Biden in 2024.
He even told Biden himself during a call on midterm election night that he is “all in” on supporting his re-election bid, adding, “we have your back.”
Newsom also insists he will not run for president even if Biden decides not to seek re-election, telling Politico, “the answer is no.” Notably, he did not rule out running in 2028.
Speculation swirled this summer that Newsom may consider running for president as he was calling out Democrats’ messaging ahead of the midterms and urging the party to be more aggressive when pushing back on attacks coming from the right. Newsom also ran ads targeting potential 2024 GOP candidates in their home states.
However, Newsom, like may Democrats believe Biden can defeat Donald Trump again if he wins the GOP primary.
“He not only beat Trump once, I think he can beat him again,” he said. “I hope he runs, I’ll enthusiastically support him.”
