- Americans' opinions of the current Democratic Party are overwhelmingly negative, according to a new survey from CNN.
- Democrats are looking for new leaders who can take the party to victory in the 2028 presidential election.
- Presidential hopefuls include previous candidates like Tim Walz and Pete Buttigieg, governors like Andy Beshear and Gretchen Whitmer and progressives like Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez.
The Democrat Party’s favorability rating recently hit a record low, according to a CNN survey — with 54% of surveyed American adults expressing unfavorable views of Democrats, 29% favorable and 16% without an opinion.
The Republican sweep in the 2024 presidential and congressional elections left Democrats across the country wondering where they went wrong. Now they are scrambling for a foothold, with some politicians seeking for a party rebrand, others making concessions on Republican policies and still others breaking from the party and running as independents.
Amid the lack of unity, Democrats continue to look for a new leader. After Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., helped pass a Republican-sponsored continuing resolution in order to keep the government open, he alienated some party activists.
Among Democrats, 57% say they want party leaders to block Republican policy priorities, according to the CNN survey.
Where are Kamala Harris and Tim Walz?
Since her loss to current President Donald Trump in November’s presidential election, former Vice President Kamala Harris has largely receded into the background of the political landscape. While she has not made any statements about running for president in 2028, Democratic donors are not confident in her ability to win, per ABC News.
“I think she’s done at the top of the ticket.” one donor told ABC News. “I think the country will not have moved in a progressive direction during that time. It will have become more conservative.”
Harris has indicated that she is considering a run for governor of California. She informed supporters that she will make a definitive choice by the end of the summer, per Politico.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz‘s name has circulated in Democratic circles as a potential 2028 presidential candidate. He has indicated deep regret about his and Harris’ loss to Trump and Vance in 2024, telling The New Yorker that he feels like he failed to “protect the most vulnerable” and advance Democratic policies. Walz has indicated that he would be willing to run for president in 2028, but only if the circumstances are right and he has the right “skill set” needed at the time.
The progressive wing of the Democratic Party
Some Democratic leaders and voters saw the loss to Trump as a failure to adhere to progressive values, as the left-flank of the party gains traction in the wake of Trump’s reelection. As Democrats become alarmed by Trump’s aggressive political style, progressive politicians like Sen. Bernie Sanders, an self-identified independent who still caucuses with Senate Democrats, are on the rise.
Sanders said he believes Democrats must try to step outside of the party and run as independents if they wish to succeed.
“There’s a lot of great leadership all over this country at the grass-roots level,” Sanders told The New York Times. “We’ve got to bring that forward. And if we do that, we can defeat Trumpism and we can transform the political situation in America.”
Sanders, who is 83, may not run for president again. But progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is young enough — and likely popular enough, according to the CNN survey — to lead a Democratic presidential campaign.
Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders went on a joint tour last week to Arizona, Nevada and Colorado, where they advocated for progressive policies and rallied Democrats against Trump.
Ocasio-Cortez has not made any statements about running for president in 2028, per NBC News. Some Democrats believe she is too controversial to successfully win a general election. Others think should could grab the political spotlight.
“She’s got boundless promise as the party leader in our country. But the question is who will have the language to express to America where we need to go,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md. “That’s a tall order for anybody, but I would say she’s definitely a contender. I don’t know that anybody else seems to be a more obvious young candidate for that position.”
Rising stars
Other Democrats are looking for more moderate candidates.
One such possible candidate is Andy Beshear, the 47-year-old governor of Kentucky. Beshear is the chair-elect of the Democrat Governors Association for 2026.
He has also already outlined a potential platform. After Harris’ loss in 2024 he wrote an op-ed in The New York Times suggesting that Democrats win voters back by refocusing on core issues like employment, affordable health care, education and public safety.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is another Democratic leader in a purple state who is also expected to run for higher office. She told crowds in Arizona last week that women should top the 2028 Democratic ticket, per the Arizona Daily Star, and refused to rule out a run when asked directly if she would on “The View.”
Whitmer, though anti-Trump, has had to work with Republicans in Michigan, per AP News. The Michigan House of Representatives is majority Republican right now. She has expressed interest in finding common ground with the Republican-controlled federal government, too.
Finally, former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg has ruled out running for congressional office in 2026, per Fox News — which leaves him open for a presidential run in 2028.
Buttigieg lost to Joe Biden in the Democratic primaries of 2020, but was able to raise his profile as the secretary of Transportation in the Biden administration, per Newsweek.
“While my own plans don’t include running for office in 2026, I remain intensely focused on consolidating, communicating and supporting a vision (that is an alternative to the) cruel chaos of (the Trump administration),” Buttigieg has told reporters, per Fox News.