Gavin Newsom says he will consider running for the White House after the 2026 midterm elections

When asked in an interview with “CBS Sunday Morning” whether it was fair to say he would seriously consider campaigning after the November 2026 vote, the term-limited governor said: “I would lie otherwise.”

Newsom is trying to raise his national profile, adopting a combative style that mimics Trump’s social media strategy with similar posts, memes and merchandise.

The Democratic governor and the Republican president quarreled over… National Guard deployment in California After immigration protests and Trump’s moves to redistrict in Texas. Newsom too He led a campaign to redraw California’s own maps To add five Democratic seats in the U.S. House of Representatives in response to the changes in Texas. Voting is underway On what is called Proposition 50 and expires on November 4.

“I look forward to who will present himself in 2028 and who he will meet at that moment,” he said in the interview that aired Sunday. “And that is the question for the American people.”

The feud between Trump and Newsom doesn’t appear to be ending anytime soon. Trump acknowledged Thursday that he had agreed to halt a federal show of force planned for this weekend in San Francisco after pleas from tech executives and the city’s mayor. Newsom was mayor of San Francisco between 2004 and 2011.

In the interview, Newsom described Trump as an “invader.”

“It’s a wrecking ball. Not just the symbolism and essence of the East Wing,” Newsom said, referring to the East Wing. Demolish that part of the White House To build a dance hall. “It destroys alliances, truth, trust, traditions and institutions.”

Earlier this year, Newsom launched a podcast in an attempt to promote himself As a middle man. During the show, he chatted with influential figures from across the political spectrum, from the late conservative Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated during a campus tour, as well as former Trump strategist Steve Bannon, to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who was former President Kamala Harris’ 2024 running mate, and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas.