Mark Halperin Lists Reasons Kamala Won’t Risk Running For California Governor

Political analyst Mark Halperin appeared on Newsmax Tuesday to lay out the reasons why former Vice President Kamala Harris is unlikely to run for California governor.

A Politico/UC Berkeley poll released Tuesday said that 36% of California policy influencers feel “indifferent” about Kamala Harris potentially running for governor, signaling widespread apathy toward her prospective bid. During an appearance on “Rob Schmitt Tonight,” Halperin said Harris likely doesn’t want the job.

“I still don’t think she’ll run because I don’t think she wants to be governor, and I think she knows she could lose,” Halperin told Schmitt. “So I’m not betting on her running. It’s hard for her to think about not being in an elective office, but this is not a layup.”

Halperin pointed to Harris’ underwhelming performance during the 2020 Democratic primary as evidence.

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“It’s not just a layup because she lost the presidential. It’s because she never had that strong relationship with the people of this state. Go back to 2020 when she ran for the nomination,” Halperin said. “And she was nowhere in the California primary in the polls.”

The UC Berkeley/Politico poll said that among registered California voters, “indifferent” was the most common reaction to Harris’ possible run. Those results, Halperin said, reflect a broader fatigue with Democrats tied to the party’s recent political losses and declining popularity in the state.

“She barely won her first statewide office. She wasn’t seriously challenged the second time. She can run, and I’m not saying she would definitely lose, but indifferent, she’d be lucky if indifferent stays as number one,” Halperin said.