Former Vice President Kamala Harris is passing on a run for California governor, she announced on Wednesday. 

Harris said in a statement that over the past six months she has given “serious thought” to a run for the governor’s office but after “deep reflection,” decided against it.

“For now, my leadership—and public service—will not be in elected office,” she said.“I look forward to getting back out and listening to the American people, helping elect Democrats across the nation who will fight fearlessly, and sharing more details in the months ahead about my own plans.”

Since leaving Washington, Harris has largely stayed out of the political fray as Democrats have sought to chart their path forward with an eye toward the 2026 midterms. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a potential 2028 presidential contender, is term-limited.   

Harris opting out of the 2026 governor’s race leaves open the possibility that she could run for president in 2028 or could signal her desire to make way for a new generation of leaders. In her statement, Harris said she had “extraordinary admiration and respect” for those in public service. 

“At the same time, we must recognize that our politics, our government, and our institutions have too often failed the American people, culminating in this moment of crisis,” she said. “As we look ahead, we must be willing to pursue change through new methods and fresh thinking — committed to our same values and principles, but not bound by the same playbook.”

The Democrats already in the race include Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis; Secretary of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond; Xavier Becerra, who led the Department of Health and Human Services under President Joe Biden; former Rep. Katie Porter; Toni Atkins, who served as both California Senate president pro tempore and California House speaker; former State Comptroller Betty Yee; and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

In California, candidates compete in all-party primary elections and the top two finishers, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election. 

Harris began her political career as San Francisco’s district attorney in 2003 before being elected as the state’s attorney general in 2010 and a U.S. senator in 2016. In 2020, Biden tapped Harris as his running mate for his successful presidential run. When Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential election, Harris replaced him at the top of the ticket and ran a truncated 107-day presidential campaign, which she lost to President Donald Trump.

Harris has broken barriers and achieved firsts throughout her political career and, in 2021, became the first woman and first person of Black and South Asian descent to serve as vice president.

Trump has frequently singled out California  and criticized its Democratic leaders, including threatening to cut or withhold federal funds to the state and insulting Newsom as “Newscum.” 

The tensions between California and the Trump administration escalated as a result of immigration raids in the Los Angeles area, which sparked mass protests. The Trump administration responded by sending the National Guard and U.S. Marines into the city, and Trump threatened to arrest Newsom. Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla was tackled and hauled out of a news conference in Los Angeles when he tried to ask questions of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. 

Harris has spoken sparingly since her 2024 election loss. But she issued a statement on June 8 about the tumult in Los Angeles, where she lives, saying she was “appalled” by the events unfolding in the city and calling sending in the National Guard a “dangerous escalation.” 

“In addition to the recent ICE raids in Southern California and across our nation, it is part of the Trump administration’s cruel, calculated agenda to spread panic and division,” she said. “The administration’s actions are not about public safety — they’re about stoking fear.”