# Frontrunners for Democratic presidential nomination in 2028 **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [January 16, 2025, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036 "2025-01-16T06:50:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 80
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1581 "2026-02-23T17:52:00Z")
> [@PhillyGuy](#): > > If I had to name a potential Democratic candidate who not only should lose the nomination, but who shouldn’t even run, it’s Pritzker. The number one message for the Democrats should be change. And low info voters are going to see Pritzker as another hotel billionaire. I don’t think this is a big deal. Every candidate has these liabilities early on (too rich, too young, too female). If a candidate can’t connect with low-info voters and define themselves, then they have no business running. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1582 "2026-02-23T18:00:50Z")
Love the Gavin meltdown. “I’m like black people, did poorly on my sat and can’t read.” Paraphrasing but hes trying to splain. I would never vote for him; not because of that. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1583 "2026-02-23T18:04:47Z")
> [@SuntanLotion](#): > > Love the Gavin meltdown link? I have no idea what you’re referring to. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1584 "2026-02-23T18:06:19Z")
> ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1585 "2026-02-23T18:22:40Z")
Full context of Newsom’s comments. There’s no there there, but the truth hasn’t put its shoes on yet. > **[Nicki Minaj accuses Gavin Newsom of treating Black voters like children](https://www.newsweek.com/nicki-minaj-gavin-newsom-book-tour-event-black-voters-11565270)** > > Newsom spoke about his experience with dyslexia at a book event, and his remarks have been criticized on social media. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1586 "2026-02-23T18:23:36Z")
OK, that was a dumb thing to say, but the above posts have paraphrased him unfairly, and in the case of “Jack”, almost certainly maliciously. What he actually said was: > “I’m not trying to impress you, I’m just trying to impress upon you, ‘I’m like you. I’m not better than you.’ I’m a 960 SAT guy,” Newsom said during [the event](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udizAzEr_58). > > He added, “You’ve never seen me read a speech because I cannot read a speech.” Could have done without the “I’m like you”, but the “I’m not better than you” is perfectly reasonable, and it’s notable that conservatives are editing that bit out before posting their outrage. Also, saying “My dyslexia makes it impossible for me to read from a printed page and make it sound smooth and natural” is actually not the same thing as saying “I can’t read”. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1587 "2026-02-23T18:50:41Z")
> [@SuntanLotion](#): > > Love the Gavin meltdown. “I’m like black people, did poorly on my sat and can’t read.” Paraphrasing but hes trying to splain. You mean you love the right wing strawman of what they pretend Newsom said? He wasn’t talking to “black people”, he was talking to a crowd of Atlanta residents, some of whom were black, some were not. Or, as he put it: > > > Sean Hannity 🇺🇸 @seanhannity ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1588 "2026-02-23T18:56:56Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Or, as he put it: nice. He was never my first choice, but he’s growing on me. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1589 "2026-02-23T18:59:46Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > nice. Indeed, he’s definitely a fighter. What I don’t get is the theory of mind someone would need to have for Newsom in order to believe he would say something like that in the context the right is pretending he said it in. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1590 "2026-02-23T21:10:27Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > In real policy a future admin could always purge and retask what is now ICE-ERO (enforcement and removal operations) and separate away what is ICE-HSI (the proper criminal investigations branch that goes after human trafficking, overseas fraud/cybercrime/etc.). Interesting idea, it could work. > [@SuntanLotion](#): > > [https://x.com/jackunheard/status/2025755645815734653?s=20](https://x.com/jackunheard/status/2025755645815734653?s=20) They were all black??? 🤨 _Minaj responded to a clip from the event, saying Newsom slowed his speech in a patronizing way toward what some online posts falsely described as an entirely Black audience. Photos from the event show a racially mixed crowd, and Newsom’s remarks were not made in response to a question about race._ Saying a mixed crowd was black is kinda racist. _Amid this shift in her political tone, Minaj has [repeatedly criticized Newsom](https://www.newsweek.com/entertainment/kim-petras-5-word-message-trans-kids-nicki-minajs-comments-11218507), including over his support for transgender children._ Apparently Minaj doesnt want transgender children to have normal rights, as Newsom has passed numerous bills supporting the LBGT+ community. > [@Thing.Fish](#): > > OK, that was a dumb thing to say, but the above posts have paraphrased him unfairly, and in the case of “Jack”, almost certainly maliciously. Yep. > [@Babale](#): > > You mean you love the right wing strawman of what they pretend Newsom said? > > He wasn’t talking to “black people”, he was talking to a crowd of Atlanta residents, some of whom were black, some were not. Good point. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1591 "2026-02-23T21:27:32Z")
[Gavin Newsom knows what it is like to struggle with reading](https://dyslexia.yale.edu/gavin-newsom-knows-like-struggle-reading/?utm_source=chatgpt.com) > [@](#): > > “I’ll read two chapters or 10 pages and have no clue. … So the only way I can focus is to underline. And then what I do after I underline something, I’ll go back and I’ll read what I underlined, but the minute I do that, then it’s in my head.” Sounds inspiring for a governor. And it’s way, way better than Trump. And better than Vance. But compared to someone, like Barack Obama or John McCain, who actually had a clue after reading chapters on the causes of World War I — this is not what I want in a commander in chief. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1592 "2026-02-23T21:51:12Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > _Amid this shift in her political tone, Minaj has [repeatedly criticized Newsom](https://www.newsweek.com/entertainment/kim-petras-5-word-message-trans-kids-nicki-minajs-comments-11218507), including over his support for transgender children._ > > Apparently Minaj doesnt want transgender children to have normal rights, as Newsom has passed numerous bills supporting the LBGT+ community. Holy shit, I thought you were exaggerating or something, but no: > [@](#): > > The Democratic governor said “he wants to see trans kids” thrive and pointed to the fact that he has signed more pro-transgender legislation than any other governor. These measures include protections for trans youth in California. Newsom also referenced having a trans godson while explaining his support for the community. > > In response, Minaj wrote: “Imagine being the guy running on wanting to see trans kids. Haha. Not even a trans ADULT would run on that. Normal adults wake up & think they want to see HEALTHY, SAFE, HAPPY kids.” ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1593 "2026-02-23T22:03:38Z")
Oh yeah, Minaj seems to have fully committed to applying for the role of Trump’s house Negro, since Kanye has apparently gotten back on his meds. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1594 "2026-02-23T22:06:22Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > What I don’t get is the theory of mind someone would need to have for Newsom in order to believe he would say something like that in the context the right is pretending he said it in. I think they think that Newsom is just as racist as they are, but rather than fighting the noble fight to preserve the white race, he’s pandering to the mud people for his personal ambition. The notion that a white person could say they’re anti-racist and actually mean it is alien to them. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1595 "2026-02-23T22:08:49Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > In response, Minaj wrote: “Imagine being the guy running on wanting to see trans kids. Haha. Not even a trans ADULT would run on that. Normal adults wake up & think they want to see HEALTHY, SAFE, HAPPY kids.” Ewww. > [@PhillyGuy](#): > > this is not what I want in a commander in chief But i kinda agree that I’d prefer a presidential candidate who reads and comprehends quickly. Still, I’ll vote for anyone who meets my minimum standard and has the charisma to win. Newsom easily meets my minimum standard. ---
**Author:** ![Calder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e99b99/32.png) [@Calder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Calder)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1596 "2026-02-23T23:15:48Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > > [@ZosterSandstorm](#): > > > > Democrats have a huge problem with extremist factions demanding purity tests in the primary, > > The only problem with your series of satirical takes on the silly distorted views that conservatives ascribe to progressives is that sometimes you’re so close to those actual conservative claims that I lose sight of your satire. > > Otherwise, _chef’s kiss_. There are parts of ZosterSandStorm post that make me uncomfortable with where he may stand and I can’t remember his posting history so I could be off base but I will agree with the quoted sentence at least. I do think that parts of the Democratic party are more interested in purifying the party and virtue signing then it is in actual winning and changing the country for the good on the other 90% of things most of the part can agree on. I will point to the arguments on this very board about voters in Michigan either not voting at all or voting for Trump because Biden was too pro Isreal. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1597 "2026-02-24T03:14:30Z")
I think Newsom would be a weak Democratic nominee. But Donald Trump disagrees with me, judging by the fact that he posted this lie on Truth Social tonight: [Wow! Gavin Newscum just dropped out of the Presidential Race!!! President DJT](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/116123225544591694) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1598 "2026-02-24T03:20:54Z")
Does it still count as a lie if he’s so detached from reality that he believes it? ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1599 "2026-02-24T03:29:26Z")
Re last post: No, then it is a mistake. I cannot rule out the possibility that Trump made a mistake. I say it’s a lie on the principle of avoiding underestimation of a cunning adversary. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036/1600 "2026-02-24T03:34:38Z")
> [@PhillyGuy](#): > > I think Newsom would be a weak Democratic nominee. But Donald Trump disagrees with me, judging by the fact that he posted this lie on Truth Social tonight: > > [Wow! Gavin Newscum just dropped out of the Presidential Race!!! President DJT](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/116123225544591694) Dropping out of the race before actually officially entering it sure would be something [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036.md?page=79) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frontrunners-for-democratic-presidential-nomination-in-2028/1013036.md?page=81)