Kamala Harris leads JD Vance in a new 2028 poll. The Public Sentiment Institute survey puts Harris ahead by over 8 points. The former Vice President outpaced multiple potential Republican rivals in hypothetical 2028 presidential matchups. The findings add to a growing body of early polling that shows a competitive but Democratic-leaning race years before any candidate has formally entered the contest.
New poll shows Kamala Harris leading in 2028 hypothetical President election
The Public Sentiment Institute poll, conducted on May 21 among 893 likely voters, shows Kamala Harris leading Vice President JD Vance 47% to 38.9%. She also leads Secretary of State Marco Rubio 46.9% to 38.9%, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis 47.2% to 38.8%, and Texas Senator Ted Cruz 46.1% to 38.5%. The poll carries a margin of error of 3.8%.
Harris is not the only Democrat performing well. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also leads every Republican tested in the survey — beating Vance 45.7% to 39.8%, Rubio 44.3% to 39%, DeSantis 45.2% to 37.3%, and Cruz 45.5% to 37.5%. California Governor Gavin Newsom rounds out a strong Democratic showing. He leads Vance 45.1% to 38.6%, Rubio 45.9% to 39.1%, and Cruz 44.4% to 39.4%.
Furthermore, Kamala Harris also holds a strong position within the Democratic primary field. A Harvard/Harris poll taken April 23-26, surveying 2,745 registered voters (margin of error: 1.87%), shows her with 50% of Democratic support. It is a commanding lead over Newsom at 22%, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro at 9%, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at 8%, and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker at 6%.
An Echelon Insights poll from last month, conducted April 17-20 among 1,012 likely voters (margin of error: 3.5%), tells a similar story with Harris at 22%, Newsom at 21%, Buttigieg at 12%, and Ocasio-Cortez at 10%, with another 10% undecided.
No potential 2028 presidential candidate from either party has officially announced a run.
Originally reported by Devanshi Basu on Mandatory.
