WATCH: Stephen A. Smith Shoots Down Dem Candidate’s Presidential Ambitions In Hilarious Clip

While appearing on HBO’s “Real Time,” longtime ESPN host and frequent political commentator Stephen A. Smith became the latest prominent Democratic Party voice to throw cold water on former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s presidential ambitions with a brutal takedown.

While presidential elections are notoriously difficult to poll this far out, Buttigieg has emerged as a somewhat surprising frontrunner with just over three years to go before Election Day 2028. A number of pollsters, including Emerson College, have found Buttigieg in the lead at this early juncture, while several others have found him within the top three.

According to the Race To The White House polling average, Buttigieg trails only former Vice President Kamala Harris 17.4 percent average as of August 8.

His presidential ambitions have been hampered by a number of red flags, however, particularly his stunning lack of support among black voters. According to a June poll from Emerson College — which did find Buttigieg with a small lead overall — not a single black respondent expressed support for his candidacy.

Poor support among black voters could doom the campaign early, as the Democratic Party presidential primary now begins with South Carolina. In addition to making up an indispensable portion of the Democratic Party coalition, black voters make up a sizable portion of the Democratic primary voting block in the Palmetto State.

During Friday’s installment of “Real Time,” host Bill Maher asked Smith why he believes the former transportation secretary has historically polled so poorly with black voters. “He doesn’t move us,” the ESPN personality responded, drawing laughs from Maher and his audience.

“I respect the man. I’ve interviewed him before. Very nice man, highly intelligent. But you gotta be able to move us, bro. He don’t move us. You can speculate as to why that is,” Smith added. “You can speculate as to why that is. I’m not going there. He doesn’t move us.”

Outside Buttigieg, former Vice President Kamala Harris has enjoyed a sizable level of support were she to launch another presidential bid in 2028. Harris recently bowed out of a potential gubernatorial bid in her home state of California, though she has left the door open to a political comeback and has maintained a consistent base of support.

Harris currently leads in the Race To The White House polling average with 21.1 percent, though like Buttigieg, her presidential ambitions face significant obstacles. A number of high-profile party donors are reportedly skeptical of funding another Harris bid after record-setting fundraising in 2024 failed to produce any results.

Outside the two aforementioned candidates, California Governor Gavin Newsom has climbed to 12 percent in the polling average, placing him in third place. The governor has made opposition to the Trump Administration a central theme of his day-to-day activities, while he has also traveled to a number of battleground states in recent weeks.