>> Continued From the Previous Page <<
That’s not the kind of momentum any candidate wants to ride into a high-stakes race. While Democratic voters statewide showed more warmth—with 33 percent claiming they’d be “joyful” and 41 percent “mostly excited”—there’s still a chunk of voters who simply aren’t buying the hype. Roughly a quarter of registered Democrats said they’d feel “indifferent.”
Jack Citrin, a political science professor at UC Berkeley, explained the dynamic: “The registered Democratic voters are very enthusiastic about her… The ‘joyful’ number goes up, the ‘excited’ number goes up, and the ‘irritated’ and ‘outraged’ numbers go way down.” Still, even Citrin admitted insiders weren’t thrilled: “These people are not given to euphoria.”
If Harris was hoping for a hero’s welcome back in California, she might be sorely disappointed. Her national brand has taken major hits—first from her floundering 2020 presidential campaign, then as a visibly ineffective vice president—and now it seems even her own state is cooling on her return.
Among Republican and independent voters, the numbers are even bleaker. GOP respondents largely picked “irritated” and “outraged” as their top reactions, while 26 percent of independents said they’d be “irritated” and 21 percent felt “hopeless” at the idea of Harris as governor.
Even more telling? Minority groups that Harris has historically tried to appeal to—like Latino and Asian American voters—aren’t giving her the boost she may have expected. Nineteen percent of Latino respondents said Harris running would make them feel “hopeless.”
“It’s almost a surprising lack of enthusiasm,” Citrin said. “But we know from the general election that Latino voters shifted as compared to 2020 or 2016 towards Trump.”
Despite this lukewarm reception, Harris remains a formidable presence—at least on paper. According to Politico, “Attorney General Rob Bonta, who opted not to run for the post, told POLITICO that Harris would be a ‘field-clearing’ candidate if she launched a campaign.” Other contenders like Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis have reportedly begun exploring “backup plans” if Harris enters the race.
But not everyone’s scared. Rick Caruso’s camp is watching the numbers closely and sees an opening.
One adviser to Caruso reportedly said the numbers show Harris has “a glass jaw.” That sentiment was echoed by GOP strategist Mike Murphy, who said: “If I were a rival Democrat, I look at those numbers, and I would say she’ll start in front, but she’s vulnerable to a campaign.”
Murphy added, “The buzz on her was better outside of California than it was in California… She’s never been that popular in the California political high school.”
Raise a Toast with the Bulletproof Trump Whiskey Glass – A Patriotic Statement Piece
Translation? Harris might be the biggest name in the race—but she’s not the most beloved. And in politics, name recognition without passion is a dangerous mix. When voters are “indifferent,” they don’t turn out. They don’t donate. They don’t care.
And perhaps most damning for someone with presidential ambitions: they don’t fight for you.
Kamala Harris may have been eyeing California as a safe haven after her crushing 2024 loss to Donald Trump. But even in her home state, the ground beneath her is starting to crack.
As the Democratic bench quietly waits and watches, the bigger question emerges: will Harris even make it to the starting line? Or will indifference bury her campaign before it begins?
Either way, California just sent her a message—and it wasn’t one of love.
