“Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is taking a gamble that other potential 2028 Democratic presidential contenders are not: that party voters might reward her — or at least not punish her — for working with President Trump,” Axios reports.

“Whitmer’s approach is a sharp break from other prominent Democrats such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who are defining themselves as anti-Trump warriors.”

“Whitmer has visited the White House three times this year — most recently this month, when she met with Trump to discuss tariffs, Medicaid funding and northern Michigan’s recovery efforts from a spring ice storm.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared he is not running for president in 2028.

Said Kennedy: “Let me be clear: I am not running for president in 2028. My loyalty is to President Trump and the mission we’ve started.”

Politico: “Across the still-forming field, ambitious Democrats are reevaluating their positions and staking out their territory.”

Mehdi Hasan: “I’ve been skeptical of a Stewart presidential candidacy in the past… But I am coming around to the idea.”

“Many Democrats left House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ annual California fundraising event last week convinced Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is running for president,” Axios reports.

“Democrats lapped up the message from the two-term governor, who told big dollar donors and vulnerable House Democrats that the key to winning over Trump voters is staying true to your values.”

Vogue: Andy Beshear has won (and won again) in Trump country. What’s next?

“Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin rubbed shoulders with major donors at the South Carolina Republican Party’s annual Silver Elephant fundraiser, fueling intrigue around a possible run for president in 2028,” the Charleston Post & Courier reports.

Steve Bannon is in the early stages of planning an audacious run for president in 2028, the Daily Mail reports. 

President Trump said that Vice President J.D. Vance was “most likely” to succeed him as the leader of the MAGA movement, in what appeared to be his strongest public backing for Mr. Vance’s political future, the New York Times reports.

Said Trump: “Well, I think most likely, in all fairness. He’s the vice president.”

He also suggested that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was “somebody that maybe would get together with JD” on a Republican ticket.

“President Donald Trump says he’d like to run for a third term but is unlikely to pursue one,” USA Today reports.

“This is his firmest indication yet that he is not looking to change or bypass the Constitutional limit set out in the 22nd Amendment to compete for president in 2028.”

CBS News: What has Trump said about seeking a third term?

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green (D) said he is considering a 2028 campaign for president, with a possible platform of healing the nation after the bitterly divisive era of American politics that has consumed the country, the Honolulu Star Advertiser reports.

Said Green: “Among governors, I think there are probably eight to 10 of us who are elevating in the public dialogue. I haven’t made up my mind about what the future holds. I would be honored to help whomever. I might even become a potential candidate, but only if I’ve actually done a good job.”

“Recently, I made the decision that, for now, I don’t want to go back in the system. I think it’s broken. I always believed that as fragile as our democracy is, our systems would be strong enough to defend our most fundamental principles and I think right now, they’re not as strong as they need to be.”

— Kamala Harris, talking to Stephen Colbert.

Democratic strategist David Axelrod on Wednesday said former Vice President Kamala Harris appears to be preparing for another White House bid after last year’s November loss, The Hill reports.

Said Axelrod: “She will begin as the polling leader in any race for president just by dint of having been the nominee the last time. But a lot of Democrats want to turn the page on all of that and look forward, and so it‘s not going to be easy for her.”

“Kamala Harris’s decision not to run for governor of California leaves open the door to a presidential campaign in 2028, even as her fellow Democrats are months into preparing for a future without her,” the New York Times reports.

“The ambitious governors, senators and former Biden administration officials who are already traveling the country, taping podcasts and building infrastructure for national campaigns have been aiming to put Ms. Harris and former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. in their collective rearview mirror.”

“And while Ms. Harris, as the former vice president, would enter the 2028 presidential primary as the most recognizable Democrat with the broadest fund-raising network, she would also carry the baggage of a 2024 campaign that Democrats do not view with much fondness.”

Politico: Why Kamala Harris isn’t running for governor.

“Kamala Harris will not run governor of California next year, she announced Wednesday, leaving the door open to another White House bid in 2028 as the former vice president considers her political future following her loss to President Donald Trump last fall,” the Washington Post reports.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore “have emerged as early favorites among their peers” to run for president in 2028, Jonathan Martin reports.

“Each was born in the 1970s, each has a promising biography and, why mince words, they’re seen as most likely to fulfill the party’s overriding criteria: They can win because it’s hard for Republicans to portray them as radicals, soft or both.”

The governors are also “fond of Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker as well as Kentucky’s Andy Beshear, if somewhat more skeptical either can claim a nomination and general election. Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer is well-liked but there are doubts she’ll run for president.”

“They’re less enamored with California’s Gavin Newsom, to put it mildly, who has never really been part of the governors club.”