The buzz surrounding a potential 2028 presidential run for Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom just went into overdrive as news surfaced that the longtime governor has suddenly left the Golden State on a major nationwide tour.
According to The California Post, Newsom already took off for a planned trip last week to Nevada, extending a year of frequent jet-setting that has included overseas trips and a national book tour.
The latest swing, which has led critics to suggest the governor is increasingly focused on a likely 2028 presidential bid rather than California, began in Las Vegas, where he campaigned for Democratic candidates before embarking on a broader summer push across California and the South to help flip congressional seats and gubernatorial races ahead of the November midterm elections.
However, despite his national ambitions, top California Republicans have jumped to criticize Newsom’s move to abandon his state.
California GOP Chairwoman Corrin Rankin slammed Newsom for his latest out-of-state trip, saying the governor is more focused on trying to “save himself” than Democrats.
Newsom, who’s being investigated by the feds along with his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom, has been laying low since announcing the probes last month.
“Every mile he puts between himself and California is another attempt to outrun his record, and distract us away from his investigations and the mess Democrats have made from Sacramento to Maine,” Rankin told The California Post in a text message.
“Californians know the truth, Newsom’s real campaign is not about the midterms, it is and always has been about Gavin Newsom.”
State Assembly Republicans also slammed Newsom’s trip in a social media post last Wednesday, writing: “If California is the model Gavin Newsom wants to sell the country, why are so many Californians choosing Nevada instead?”
As our @CAGovernor campaigns in Nevada instead of focusing on the job Californians elected him to do, reporters should ask one simple question:
If California is the model Gavin Newsom wants to sell the country, why are so many Californians choosing Nevada instead? https://t.co/C5Bm9DMCYF
— California Assembly Republicans (@AsmRepublicans) July 8, 2026
Newsom’s team has responded, insisting the nationwide travel is intended to counter President Trump and what they call his push to consolidate power following the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision rolling back parts of the Voting Rights Act — not to start a presidential campaign.
In addition to his trip to Nevada, later this summer Newsom plans to campaign across California in competitive House districts reshaped by Proposition 50, the voter-approved redistricting measure Democrats say improved their chances of reclaiming the House majority, according to reports.
He is also expected to travel through the South, though specific states have not yet been announced.
Newsom has reportedly already raised more than $5.2 million for Democratic candidates and causes this election cycle through his national small-dollar fundraising network.
His team also said a single fundraising email sent days ago generated more than $120,000 for three Democratic House candidates — Richard Pan, Marni von Wilpert and Randy Villegas — whose races became more competitive following last year’s redistricting victory via Proposition 50.
Earlier this year, Newsom began a nationwide tour promoting his memoir, Young Man in a Hurry, making appearances in New York, Boston, Nashville, Atlanta, South Carolina, Austin and Las Vegas.
According to reports, his federal political committees spent more than $1.5 million purchasing copies of the book and tens of thousands of dollars renting venues for campaign-style events.
According to The California Post, Newsom’s book tour was paid for by Campaign for Democracy, a political action committee that, combined with two other entities, has given Newsom a political war chest to burnish his national image ahead of his expected presidential run.
Altogether, the two PACs and a Super PAC had $14.5 million as of this spring, according to multiple reports.
This is an ongoing story. Check back for updates.