Gov. Gavin Newsom’s political star power waned as Vice President Kamala Harris rose to the top of the Democratic Party in the months before the 2024 election.

The number of reporters tracking the California governor’s movements has dwindled. Talk about his presidential prospects amounted to little more than murmurs about whether he would be an important figure in eight years’ time. Some of his own political advisers have shifted their attention to Harris’ selection.

All that is expected to change after her presidential campaign against former President Donald Trump ended in disaster on Tuesday, with voters electing the Republican to a second term in the nation’s highest office.

“As governor, Mr. Newsom will lead a resistance government for the next two years, but after that he will become a very prominent and national figure,” said Dan Schnur, who teaches political communication at the University of Southern California, the University of California, Berkeley, and Pepperdine. He will become a recognized party leader.”

“There may be dozens of other plausible Democrats thinking about running in 2028, but none of them are starting with the advantages that Mr. Newsom has developed for himself. ”

As the liberal antithesis to conservative dogma on abortion, immigration, and LGBTQ+ rights, California naturally stands out for its role as a Republican foil and protector of Democratic values ​​during the first Trump era. He is trying to resume his role. Democratic lawmakers in the state Capitol are already talking about calling a special session before Trump is sworn into office to shore up state law against potential federal challenges.

California’s position automatically elevates Mr. Newsom’s standing. In recent years, Newsom has raised his profile in the culture wars with Republicans, raising millions of dollars for Democratic candidates and touring the country representing Biden and Harris in negotiations on the 2028 presidential nomination. I’ve spent my time doing that.

In an interview after holding a rally for Democratic congressional candidates two days before the election, Mr. Newsom did not want to discuss the reality of the election as a watershed moment in his political future. The governor is reluctant to run for president and has said that is not on his mind.

Instead, the Democratic governor shared his concerns about Trump’s return to the White House and spoke about his administration’s efforts to prepare in the months before the election.

“He wants to put a crowbar in the spokes of our wheels within a nanosecond,” Newsom said.

In his acceptance speech on Tuesday night, President Trump declared that the US side had given him an “unprecedented and powerful mission.” He also vowed to fulfill campaign promises that included dozens of declarations, including mass deportations, prosecuting political opponents and ending federal disaster aid for California’s wildfires.

The Newsom administration has completed an analysis of Project 2025, described as the new Republican administration’s playbook, which includes plans to replace thousands of career federal employees with Trump supporters who carry far-right policies. The governor’s staff also analyzed what could be at risk in California.

His administration, with support from Army Gen. Rob Bonta, has already begun “stopping Trump” in the state. They reviewed more than 100 lawsuits California filed against the federal government during the first administration to pinpoint the state’s potential vulnerabilities and plan the next president’s policies. .

Newsom said it was too early to say definitively that state legislatures, newly elected before Trump’s inauguration, would convene in a special session in December to pass legislation protecting state policies. Both he and state Assemblyman Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) said so. Possibly. The special session in California should focus on one individual policy issue, with abortion rights and climate change being top considerations for the Newsom administration.

“We have a chart that summarizes everything they’ve talked about as it relates to California and everything we’ve dealt with in the past,” Newsom said Sunday. “There is an understanding of where they want to go in the future.”

Trump’s victory could make it more difficult for Newsom to implement his policies before his term ends in two years.

Newsom said Sunday he has a list of “73 things” he wants to get done. Ahead of Election Day, aides said his comprehensive list includes improvements to the state’s preparedness for bird flu outbreaks and enough to support his goal of banning new sales of gasoline-powered cars by 2035. He said this includes building electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

The governor dismissed the idea that President Trump would block his plans, but said he was not naive that “this would be a very difficult environment” if Trump were to win. He called the former president “delusional” and “totally uncool.” Disorganized. ”

“We continue to drive hard with the same energy,” Newsom said Sunday. “But there’s a lot of noise and I’m well aware of it. I’ve been with this guy for years. I’m more prepared than most.”

Newsom said there is no bigger target for President Trump than California, which is home to Rep. Adam Schiff, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Harris, who was elected junior senator from California on Tuesday.

“We’re not going to be cowardly. We’re not going to just stay on the defensive here, we’re going to build coalitions and build partnerships with other governors as well as other states and AGs,” Newsom said. spoke before the election.

After criticizing national Democrats for not going on the offensive in the culture wars, Newsom burnished his party’s brand as a fighter. The California Democrat launched his own Campaign for Democracy in 2023, giving himself the means to travel across the country to raise money and raise his profile for other Democrats.

Newsom became Biden’s top surrogate after Biden announced his re-election campaign, but he also continued to travel to other states on behalf of the Democratic Party and debate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Fox News. Ta. Newsom remained a Biden supporter even as other Democratic leaders called on the president to withdraw from the 2024 race after his poor performance in the summer debates.

With Biden endorsing Harris as his successor, the topics surrounding Newsom are what he will do after he finishes his term in California, and if Harris wins, he will be in the news as a possible candidate for the 2032 presidential election. The question then turned to whether it was possible. Mr. Trump won a second term.

Mike Madrid, a Republican political consultant, said Mr. Newsom has done a good job of positioning himself on cultural issues within the party that are important to the Democratic base of white, college-educated, home-owning voters.

But doubts remain whether the new Californians will be able to win the hearts and minds of Americans within four years. Madrid said Harris’ failure in the presidential race underscored the reality that Democrats need to be able to speak out on working-class issues if they want to defeat Republicans and take back the White House.

“I don’t think any Democratic Party will be able to survive in the future unless they can appeal to the Latino working class,” Madrid said. “And it’s not written at the top of his resume.”

So there’s reason to be skeptical about how high Newsom could rise if he chooses to run for president, Madrid said.

“He’s going to play really well in the primaries, but there’s going to be a viability question of whether he can win back Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania and North Carolina and be competitive.”