Former Vice President Kamala hasn’t determined whether or not she’s going to run for California governor subsequent yr, however a brand new ballot launched Wednesday reveals that she can be a favourite of voters if she does.
Although many citizens have been undecided, Harris was the selection of 41% of survey respondents, in comparison with 29% who opted for an unnamed Republican candidate, in keeping with a ballot by the College of California Irvine. She additionally had the best favorability scores and is most well-known in comparison with the entire candidates who’ve introduced.
“The trail to governor appears well-paved for Vice President Harris if she decides to run,” stated Jon Gould, dean of UCI’s College of Social Ecology, in an announcement. “Though she lacks majority help in the mean time, folks know her higher than the opposite candidates and customarily view her favorably.”
Harris, who served because the state’s legal professional normal and U.S. senator, unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, turned former President Joe Biden’s vice chairman after which ran for president in 2024 in a whirlwind and unsuccessful marketing campaign after Biden determined to not run for reelection.
She has stored a comparatively low profile since shedding the November presidential election, shifting again to the Brentwood residence she shares with husband Doug Emhoff. She has made some public appearances, most not too long ago attending the Saturday funeral for Democratic former Minnesota Home Speaker Melissa Hortman, who was killed alongside along with her husband in what a federal prosecutor has described as an assassination.
Harris additionally not too long ago delivered her most pointed remarks about President Trump and attended a highschool commencement in Compton.
Solely 5% of Californians had by no means heard of Harris, whereas each different introduced candidate was unknown by a far bigger variety of respondents, together with those that had run for statewide workplace beforehand. Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who ran for governor in 2018, was unknown by 47% of survey respondents; 48% have been unfamiliar with former Rep. Katie Porter of Irvine, who ran for U.S. Senate in 2024.
When examined in opposition to candidates who’ve introduced, Harris was the selection of 24% of voters, the one candidate to crack double digits, in keeping with the ballot. Nonetheless, 40% of respondents have been undecided, in keeping with the ballot.
Amongst Democrats, who account for 47% of the state’s voters as of February, Harris had the help of almost half, whereas each introduced candidate had single-digit help. Harris led amongst Californians in each area and in each racial group, in keeping with the ballot.
Billionaire actual property developer Rick Caruso, a Democrat who unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Los Angeles in 2022 and is reportedly debating whether or not to run for mayor once more or governor, was the favored alternative of GOP voters, with the backing of 27% of survey respondents.
Harris, whose representatives didn’t reply to a request for remark, is predicted to determine whether or not she enters the race by the top of the summer time, a delay that has prompted criticism from a number of candidates within the crowded subject of candidates who’ve already introduced their bids.
The statewide ballot of 4,143 Californians was carried out on-line in two separate polls, one between Could 27 and June 2, and one other between Could 29 and June 4. The margin of error in both path varies between 2.9% and three.6%, in keeping with UCI.
