California Gov. Gavin Newsom could be setting himself up for a 2024 presidential run, but a bid in this election cycle is far from guaranteed.
That was what multiple high-level politicians in California told The Epoch Times.
“He’s certainly running a shadow campaign right now to be in position,” said Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) in an interview with The Epoch Times on June 13.
“I think they’re just trying to keep the options open for if and when [President Joe] Biden blows up,” he continued.
Newsom pledged he wouldn’t contest the 2024 presidential nomination with Biden, according to November 2022 reporting from Politico. That leaves open the possibility of a Newsom run if Biden is out of the picture before November 2024.
“I don’t see when I look at their bench a whole lot of options,” LaMalfa added, saying he did not consider Vice President Kamala Harris or Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg particularly viable.
LaMalfa said there’s “speculation” that Harris will be pushed out of the vice president slot in the upcoming election, potentially opening up another avenue for Newsom to enter the Oval Office.
LaMalfa said he believes his perspective is similar to that of other political insiders in California.
“I think everybody believes Newsom is full-court press positioning himself,” he told The Epoch Times.
LaMalfa certainly sounded similar to California Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher.
“How could any Democrat not see that there’s a problem with Joe?” said Gallagher, who told The Epoch Times in a June 12 interview that Newsom is “working overtime” to ensure that he’s the natural replacement should Biden drop out.
“He [Newsom] is doing these nationwide campaigns. He’s going to other states. He’s going on Sean Hannity … Those are all things that someone running for president does,” Gallagher said.
Newsom sidestepped Hannity’s 2024 questions during his June 12 appearance on the commentator’s Fox News program.
