California Governor Gavin Newsom has acknowledged that his recent visit to South Carolina was partly influenced by thoughts of a potential 2028 presidential campaign, as he seeks to strengthen his relationship with Democratic voters ahead of his departure from office.
Newsom, who has visited the state four times in four years, said during an interview with CNN that the possibility of a presidential bid was a factor in his latest trip, although he insisted it was not his primary motivation.
“Obviously, it’s an early calendar state, but, you know, my state of mind was here before,” Newsom said. “I’d be lying,” he admitted, if he denied 2028 was a factor in the visit.
South Carolina has become particularly significant in the Democratic presidential calendar, with Black voters making up more than half of the party’s primary electorate in the state.
Newsom said his longstanding relationship with South Carolina Democrats was another reason for returning to the state. He previously campaigned there for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and also visited during a book tour.
His relationship with state Democratic Party chair Christale Spain was highlighted during the visit. Spain, who celebrated her 50th birthday on Thursday, accompanied Newsom between several events and praised the $370,000 he has helped raise for the state party.
Newsom also presented Spain with birthday gifts, including a tiara and sash at one event and boxing gloves at another.
The governor drew sizeable crowds at several stops, although the composition of those audiences raised questions about his ability to connect with Black voters.
At the Center for African American History, Art and Culture in Aiken, where Newsom spoke in a building originally constructed to educate Black children, the audience was largely older and White.
Bradley Taylor, a recently retired worker from the Savannah River nuclear waste site, said he was surprised by the turnout.
“I was saying to my wife—where are we? Are we not part of the Democratic Party anymore?” Taylor said.
Taylor said he was not yet convinced that Newsom was his preferred candidate and was also considering former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg because of what he described as Buttigieg’s “human connection.”
His wife, Jacqueline Taylor, a registered nurse, appeared more receptive to Newsom.
“Watching him troll Trump — that kind of turns me on,” she said.
After hearing Newsom speak about California’s redistricting efforts and his broader strategy for confronting Republicans, Jacqueline Taylor said she was encouraged by his message.
“I am so thankful for him. If you want to gerrymander and cheat… you’ve got to fight fire with fire,” she said.
Bill Clyburn, an 85-year-old longtime South Carolina state representative and cousin of Congressman Jim Clyburn, also praised Newsom’s appeal.
“He’s just saying things that touch us,” Clyburn said.
Clyburn added that if Newsom decided to run for president, “He can do about as well as expected.”
At another event in West Columbia, 25-year-old congressional candidate Zyon Khalifa said he appreciated Newsom’s willingness to directly address issues affecting Black Americans.
“You don’t hear him trying to code-switch,” Khalifa said. “Instead of trying to sugarcoat it, say it in some way that all audiences would be OK with, he’s just saying what’s happening.”
Newsom’s outreach also received support from Jermaine Johnson, the Democratic nominee for governor, who hosted him at a fundraiser before joining him for a discussion at historically Black Allen University in Columbia.
By Newsom’s final event in Lancaster, the proportion of Black attendees had increased.
Newsom dismissed concerns about the racial composition of some of his earlier audiences, saying the timing of the events played a role.
“You come on the weekends, completely different,” he said. “By the way, last time we were here was almost exclusively African-American audience.”
He also said he valued the smaller gatherings because they allowed him to engage more directly with voters.
“I don’t need big crowds, I don’t need to give a speech. I love this connection, I love the human connection, I love the granularity. I like reading between the lines, I like these small groups of people that we’re meeting,” Newsom told CNN. “I learn a lot.”
Newsom’s potential appeal among Black voters is already being considered by his advisers as they assess possible Democratic rivals for 2028, including Kamala Harris and Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff.
His South Carolina tour also served as another platform for attacking President Donald Trump, particularly over immigration enforcement, the National Guard and redistricting.
Newsom revisited a June 2025 phone conversation with Trump during which immigration enforcement officers faced protesters in Los Angeles.
Newsom has accused Trump of lying about what was said during the call and repeated his account several times during his South Carolina appearances.
He said Trump began the conversation by discussing the 2024 election and claimed that he had won his debate with Harris, describing it as “a four against one” situation involving the debate hosts, cameramen and Harris.
White House communications director Steven Cheung rejected Newsom’s account.
“The only liar here is Gavin who continues to fail his state and gaslight the public instead of helping his state that is suffering under his radical policies. The president called Gavin Newsom to tell him to get his ass in gear, but Gavin decided to disgustingly side with the violent rioters instead of protecting Californians. He is a loser of the highest order and continues to beclown himself on a daily basis,” Cheung told CNN.
Newsom said he had provided his contemporaneous notes from the conversation to House Oversight Committee chairman Jim Comer and that the notes were also part of his defamation lawsuit against Fox News over its coverage of the call.
“I’m in this for the long haul,” Newsom said. “They can say whatever they want. These facts are well established in the court of law and in Congress, and not a word has been said to refute those assertions and facts. And I’ve done them on the penalty of perjury.”
Despite the political focus surrounding his visit, Newsom maintained that his attention remained on building relationships in South Carolina.
His political ambitions, however, are becoming increasingly difficult to separate from his public appearances, particularly as he prepares to leave the California governorship in January after three decades in elected office.
State Senator Margie Bright Matthews summed up her changing impression of Newsom after seeing him in person.
“I thought he was just a tall glass of sweet tea,” she said. “I realized he’s more than just a good-looking face. He’s got moxie.”
