JUST IN: Tim Walz Announces Decision On 2028 Presidential Run

Just a couple weeks after embarking on a nationwide speaking tour in mostly red and purple states, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced his decision on whether he will be launching a presidential bid in 2028.

During a recent podcast interview conducted by former Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison, the former chair wasted no time in asking Walz about his potential White House ambitions. “First question that people would kill me if I didn’t ask. You think about running in 2028?” Harrison asked.

“I am not,” Walz said without hesitation in a somewhat surprising answer. “I am not. And my job, and I’ve said that, I am doing all I can to help build the party and make sure whoever that person is wins,” the governor added. “And I think we need to flood the zone with people.”

Walz’s decision to officially drop out of contention came as a bit of a shock to the political world as he appeared to be laying the groundwork for a bid. He has remained active in the national political space and has headlined a number of Democratic Party speaking events, as have additional presidential contenders such as Governors Gavin Newsom of California and JB Pritzker of Illinois.

The Minnesota governor has also received mixed results in the polling department. According to a recent 2028 Democratic Party primary poll from Echelon Insights, Walz was named as the preferred candidate by just three percent of respondents.

There was a silver lining in the poll, which had the governor’s former running mate leading rhetoric field, however. Among Democratic Party primary voters who back Kamala Harris, 14 percent named Governor Walz as their second choice, the highest among any other candidate.

While presidential primary polls this far out have historically have been hard to analyze, former Vice President Harris and former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg have often found themselves atop polls in recent weeks.

Harris has enjoyed strong support among black respondents, which could prove consequential given the Democratic Party’s primary process, which begins in South Carolina. Black voters make up a significant portion of the Democratic Party electorate in the Palmetto State and could propel Harris to an early victory should polling trends hold.

While Buttigieg has polled as the front runner in a number of recent surveys, including a June 28 poll from Emerson College, the former South Bend mayor is running into the exact opposite. In an astonishing result, not a single black respondent named Buttigieg as their preferred choice, building on what was an issue for his candidacy in 2020.

The Echelon Insights poll spelled similar danger for Buttigieg. While he managed to come in second place behind Harris, just eight percent of respondents named him as their second choice, suggesting that Buttigieg’s support is enthusiastic but limited.

California Governor Gavin Newsom — who was been attempting to come off as a moderate on podcast circuits — has enjoyed a sizable bump in the polls over the last several weeks.