Takeaways From the First Big Gathering of Potential 2028 Democratic Candidates
The National Action Network convention showcased similarities and some differences in a wide-open field of possible contenders.
They coyly acknowledged interest in running for president, forcefully condemned the Trump administration’s handling of the war in Iran and eagerly outlined political blueprints for the midterms and beyond.
Nearly a dozen Democrats weighing 2028 presidential campaigns descended on Manhattan this week, appearing at an annual convention hosted by the Rev. Al Sharpton’s civil rights group, the National Action Network.
The gathering offered potential candidates an opportunity to bring their messages to a large audience of Black voters, who have played a key role in selecting the Democratic nominee in past presidential races.
None of the Democrats said outright that they would run. But in appearances onstage with Mr. Sharpton, some appeared to be inching closer, including former Vice President Kamala Harris, who received a raucous response from the crowd.
Here are four takeaways from the convention:
The Democrats’ similarities were on display. So were some differences.
In onstage interviews with Mr. Sharpton, the potential presidential contenders emphasized many of the same ideas, attacking President Trump and stressing the importance of protecting voting rights. But there were also some noticeable distinctions.
Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania suggested the party should focus relentlessly in the midterms on Mr. Trump and his polarizing leadership style.
“We need a national referendum on Donald Trump and on what is happening in Washington, D.C.,” Mr. Shapiro said, pointing to “the chaos and the cruelty and the corruption that we see every day.”
Ms. Harris, the Democratic nominee in 2024, echoed Mr. Shapiro in condemning Mr. Trump’s stewardship of the economy and decision to take the country to war in Iran.
“We need to understand it’s bigger than him,” Ms. Harris said of Mr. Trump’s conduct. “We have midterms coming up. And anyone who is facilitating this — either by their silence or actively — needs to be held accountable.” She added that “it’s going to take more than one election” for the United States to revive its standing on the world stage.
Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois appeared to swipe at a central plank of Ms. Harris’s 2024 campaign: An argument that American democracy was on the line.
“You don’t win elections talking to the public about democracy,” Mr. Pritzker said. He urged his party to focus on specific policies, like raising the minimum wage, that could deliver economic relief to struggling Americans.
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, who won two races for governor in one of the country’s most conservative states, advised Democrats running in the midterms to “talk like a normal human being” and focus on everyday economic issues.
And Mr. Beshear pushed back on an argument, advanced by Representative Ro Khanna, a California progressive, that congressional Democrats should work to remove Mr. Trump from office through impeachment.
“There aren’t the votes there,” Mr. Beshear told reporters at the convention. “They ought to be focusing on the terrible approach of this president to the war.”
The Democrats practiced the Art of the Dodge.
Toward the end of what he billed as “fireside chats” with the potential candidates, Mr. Sharpton asked directly whether they would run for president.
Democrats dove and ducked, declaring they were more focused on the midterms, and what was best for their party and state, and certainly not on their own personal ambitions.
Still, with laughs and smiles and in sometimes-elliptical answers, some hinted that 2028 was very much on their minds.
Ms. Harris was particularly direct.
“I’m thinking about it,” she said of running for president again.
Mr. Pritzker said he was “going to be more involved than ever before in 2028.”
And former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg came perhaps the closest to saying he would run, after Mr. Sharpton recalled having lunch with him at Sylvia’s Restaurant in Harlem during his 2020 presidential campaign.
“Just so my calendar’s clear, should I be reserving a table at Sylvia’s?” Mr. Sharpton asked. “Are you going to run again?”
Mr. Buttigieg replied: “You save me a seat. I’ll be there.”
Mr. Shapiro, for his part, told reporters that “no one should be looking past these midterms.” But onstage with Mr. Sharpton, he acknowledged that he wanted “to be a part” of the Democratic conversation in 2028.
Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, whose recent book tour has stoked speculation about a run for the White House, gave a speech at the convention rather than joining Mr. Sharpton for an onstage interview.
But in a backstage interview with The New York Times, Mr. Booker said: “It’s not the time for future ambition. It’s time for present action.”
Harris spoke to a packed, rapt crowd.
Many Democrats are anxious for new leadership after Ms. Harris’s defeat to Mr. Trump in 2024 devastated Democrats.
But at the convention in New York, Ms. Harris found herself in especially friendly territory. A buzz filled the convention hall long before she arrived, and she was met with standing ovations and chants of “Run again!”
The crowd was far more muted during other candidates’ conversations with Mr. Sharpton, and quickly thinned after Ms. Harris left the stage. There is plenty of uncertainty about which potential candidate would have an advantage with Black voters in a 2028 primary, and this week’s event was the first of many auditions.
For his part, Mr. Sharpton said in an interview that he thought Ms. Harris, who made history as the first Black woman to win a major party’s nomination, was “really seriously considering running” again. He said it would be “fair” to say she would start as the favorite of the convention crowd.
The Iran war was a rallying point.
For weeks, Democrats running in the midterms have been putting the war in Iran at the center of their political messaging, excoriating the president over a sharp increase in prices caused by the conflict.
And at the convention, the Democrats eying 2028 runs laid into the president over the military campaign, calling it a “war of choice” that they said was punishing American pocketbooks and risking the lives of U.S. troops. (The White House and Republicans say Iran posed a severe threat.)
“We are now watching how our gas prices continue to skyrocket, energy prices continue to skyrocket, groceries are more expensive,” said Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland, an Army veteran.
The Latest on the Trump Administration
Postal Service: The agency, dealing with a significant cash shortfall, now faces pressure on another front as President Trump tries to assert federal control over mail voting. Here are the changes the Postal Service is considering and how it could affect your mail.
Anti-Drone Lasers: The Federal Aviation Administration gave the military the green light to use high-energy lasers to shoot down suspected drones in U.S. airspace, ending a two-month standoff over whether the weapons endangered airplanes.
James Blair: The president announced that Blair, a deputy chief of staff, is taking over Trump’s outside political operation and its $300 million-plus budget, in a move to better prepare for a potentially difficult midterms cycle.
Melania Trump on Epstein: Trump said that he had known his wife wanted to speak about Jeffrey Epstein at some point, and that he “thought she had a right to talk about it,” even if he had not known what exactly she planned to say.
Pentagon Press Rules: The Pentagon has asked a federal judge to allow it to continue requiring escorts whenever journalists enter the military complex, a restriction that it argues is essential to guarding against national security leaks.
Washington Arch Plans: The Trump administration released its latest plan for a 250-foot triumphal arch that would stand off one end of the Arlington Memorial Bridge by the Potomac River, the president’s latest step to leave his mark on the capital.
Graphic Video: Trump posted footage taken by a security camera in which a man, who the authorities said had come from Haiti, is seen fatally beating a woman. He has argued to end protections for Haitian immigrants.
How We Report on the Trump Administration
Hundreds of readers asked about our coverage of the president. Times editors and reporters responded to some of the most common questions.