California’s role in shaping Democratic fortunes revealed

California’s potential to lead a national Democratic comeback was on full display as Democratic leaders from across the country recently gathered in downtown Los Angeles.

But is the party ready to bet on the Golden State Warriors?

Appearances at the Democratic National Committee meeting by the state’s most prominent Democrats, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom, made clear the dangers and promise of California’s appeal. Harris failed to defeat a politically wounded Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race, while Newsom is now one of President Trump’s most prominent critics and is considered the Democratic leading contender to replace the Republican president in the White House in 2028.

California’s policies on such divisive issues as providing more government-funded health care, helping undocumented immigrants and supporting LGBTQ+ rights continue to serve as a Rorschach test for polarized voters across the country, providing comfort to progressives and ammunition for Republican attack ads.

“California is like your cool cousin who comes on vacation, glamorous and charming, but maybe not a part of the family year-round,” said Elizabeth Ashford, a veteran Democratic strategist who worked for former governors Jerry Brown, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Harris when they were state attorneys general.

Newsom, in particular, is quick to tout California as home to the world’s fourth-largest economy, a multibillion-dollar agricultural industry and the economic and cultural powerhouses of Hollywood and Silicon Valley. Critics, led by Trump, paint the state as a dystopian hellhole — filled with homeless encampments and lawlessness and plagued by high taxes and a higher cost of living.

Only two Californians were elected president, Republicans Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon. But that was generations ago, and Harris and Newsom are considering ending the decades-long drought in 2028. Both men seized the moment to court party leaders and activists at the Democratic National Committee’s three-day winter meeting, which ends Saturday.

Harris told committee members and guests on Friday that the party’s victories in state elections across the country in November reflected voters’ anxiety about the impact of Trump’s policies, particularly affordability and health care costs. But she argued that “neither side has earned the public’s trust.”

“So as we plan for what’s to come after this administration, we can’t miss the fact that the status quo is flawed and a system that has failed so many of you,” said Harris, who was criticized after the presidential campaign for not paying enough attention to table issues, including the growing financial pressures Americans face.

Although Harris, who earlier this year ruled out running for governor, did not mention whether she would run for the White House again in 2028, she believes the party needs to do some introspection about its future.

“We need to answer the question of what happens next for our political parties and our democracy, and in doing so we must honestly acknowledge that for many people, the American Dream has become more of a myth than a reality,” she said.

Many party leaders who spoke at the meeting focused on the role California could play in deciding control of Congress after voters in November approve Proposition 50, a rare congressional redrawing in a decade aimed at increasing the number of Democrats in the state’s congressional delegation in the 2026 elections.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass rallied the crowd, reminding them that Democrats took back the U.S. House of Representatives during Trump’s first term and predicting that the state will play a key role in next year’s midterm elections.

Newsom, a champion of Proposition 50, basked in the victory at the Democratic National Committee meeting the day before as he strode through the hotel’s hallways, stopping every few steps to talk to committee members, shake their hands and take selfies.

“There’s a sense of optimism here,” Newsom said.

Democratic candidates also won races in New Jersey and Virginia by wide margins last month, signs party leaders said were signs of growing voter dissatisfaction with Trump and Republican leadership in Washington.

“From a broader perspective, the party has rejuvenated and they are winning,” Newsom said. “Winning solves a lot of problems.”

Louisiana state committee member Katie Darling burst into tears as she watched fellow Democrats flock to Newsom.

“He really tried to bring people together during a very difficult time,” said Darling, who grew up in a Republican family in Sacramento. “He gets a lot of pushback for talking and working with Republicans, but when he does that, I see him talking to parents who I love and whose views I strongly disagree with politically. … I do think we need to talk to each other to move the country forward.”

Governor Gavin Newsom speaks as his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom looks on during an election night rally at the California Democratic Party headquarters in Sacramento on November 4, 2025.

(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Darling said she listened to Newsom’s podcast, in which his choice of guests, including the late Charlie Kirk, and his “really unfair” comments on the show about transgender athletes participating in women’s sports, drew the ire of some on the left.

Another potential 2028 presidential candidate, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, whose family has historically supported Newsom, was reportedly on hand for the closed-door meeting Thursday. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, also a possible White House contender, appeared on Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show and held a meeting in Los Angeles on Thursday.

California Republican Party Chairman Corrin Rankin called the Democratic National Committee meeting in Los Angeles an “anti-Trump meeting,” pointing to the homeless encampment on Skid Row just blocks from where committee members gathered.

“We need accountability and solutions that actually get people off the streets and make communities safer and life more affordable,” Rankin said.

Elected officials from across the country are drawn to California because of its wealthy political donors. The state is the largest source of donations to the Trump and Harris campaign committees during the 2024 presidential campaign, contributing nearly $2.5 billion, according to Open Secrets, a nonpartisan nonprofit that tracks election finance.

While the DNC gathering focuses primarily on day-to-day internal matters, gatherings of party leaders attract liberal groups seeking to raise funds and draw attention to their causes.

Actor Jane Fonda and comedian Nikki Glazer hosted an event at Three Club Hollywood cocktail bars to raise the minimum wage. California already has the highest minimum wage in the country; one of the event’s organizers is working to raise rates to $30 an hour in some California counties.

“The affordability crisis is pushing millions of Americans to the edge, and democracy cannot survive when people working full-time can’t afford basic necessities,” Fonda said before the event. “Raising wages is one of the most powerful ways to bring stability and hope to families.”

But California’s liberal policies are seen as a liability for Democrats elsewhere, where issues like transgender rights and health care for undocumented immigrants have not been warmly received by some of the blue-collar workers who once formed the party’s base.

Trump exploited that disconnect in the final months of the 2024 presidential campaign, when his campaign aired ads highlighting Harris’ support for transgender rights, including taxpayer-funded gender confirmation surgery for prisoners.

“Kamala is for them/them, President Trump is for you,” the ad reads. The ad was played more than 30,000 times in swing states during the fall, particularly during football games and NASCAR races.

“Kamala has 99 problems. California is not one of them,” said John Podesta, a veteran Democratic strategist who served as a senior adviser to former President Joe Biden, an adviser to former President Obama and White House chief of staff to former President Clinton.

He disputed the argument that California would hurt Democrats’ chances, either through its policies or candidates, arguing there was a broader disconnect between the party and its voters.

“There’s a real problem with Democrats losing touch with the middle class and the poor in favor of the cultural elite,” Podesta said. “My shorthand is, we used to be a party on the factory floor, now we’re a party in the faculty lounge. This is not a California problem. This is an elitism problem.”

Although Podesta has yet to endorse anyone in the 2028 presidential race, he praised Newsom for standing up not only to Trump but also to “left-wing extremists” in the Democratic Party.

This year, California’s spats with the Trump administration over issues including immigration, climate change, water and artificial intelligence policy have fueled claims that Californians are out of touch with many Americans. But Newsom and committee members believe the state has been at the vanguard of where the country ultimately ends up.

“I’m very proud of California. This is a state that’s not just focused on growth, but focused on inclusion,” the governor said, before listing off a series of California initiatives, including lower-priced insulin and a higher minimum wage. “There are a lot of policies coming out of California that not only promote commitment but policy direction, and I think that’s very important to the party.”