Who do Democrats want as their nominee in 2028? Familiar faces top the list, poll finds

Despite losing the 2024 presidential election, former Vice President Kamala Harris would still be a top contender for the Democratic party’s nomination in 2028, new polling shows.

In the latest Echelon Insights poll, 32% of Democrats — a plurality — said they would vote for Harris if the 2028 Democratic primary were held today.

The poll, conducted between Jan. 22 and 24, sampled 1,024 registered voters and has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.

An additional 21% of respondents said they would cast their ballot for a “generic Democrat,” making it the second most popular choice, and 17% said they were unsure.

Further, eight individuals — most of whom have already run for president — received single-digit support.

Six percent of respondents said they’d vote for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, while 5% said they’d choose Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

In what may come as a surprise, 3% of Democratic respondents said they’d vote for President Donald Trump or another Republican as the party’s nominee.

Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez all received 2% support.

Garnering just 1% support were former President Joe Biden and former First Lady Michelle Obama.

Additionally, when asked to choose who they’d support as the party’s standard-bearer in 2028, 7% of respondents listed “other.”

The results aren’t entirely unprecedented. Three years after losing the 2016 election, Clinton — along with Biden — was the top choice among Democrats to run for the White House in 2020, according to a Harvard-Harris poll.

This story was originally published January 31, 2025 at 3:47 PM with the headline "Who do Democrats want as their nominee in 2028? Familiar faces top the list, poll finds."