Inside the emerging push to knock Newsom off his perch as the Dems' 2028 frontrunner

Gavin Newsom's Democratic rivals are plotting how to take down the early 2028 frontrunner, with a heavy emphasis on how unpopular his left-leaning views are outside deep-blue California.

Driving the news: Our conversations with more than 20 Democratic operatives, including several working for 2028 hopefuls, reveal that they see the California governor as the guy to beat — and a guy with a lot of personal baggage that's exploitable for a presidential primary.

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• Newsom, 58, has begun trying to swat down or get ahead of such arguments. That effort includes his new book coming in February, "Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery."

Newsom's surge this year — driven partly by his trolling of President Trump and a successful redistricting push in California to counter Trump's red-state redistricting — has drawn respect and envy from other Democratic leaders.

• Many now begrudgingly admit they underestimated him.
• "Objectively, Gavin has probably done the best from the 2028ers in the last year," said one source who's working for another possible presidential candidate.
• "It's a superficial sugar high," another said of Newsom's surge.

Zoom in: Our discussions with Democratic operatives shed light on what's likely to unfold as foes try to define Newsom:

1. The "too liberal, coastal elite" argument
2. If primary voters prioritize electability, Newsom — a former San Francisco mayor and current leader of left-leaning California — could be seen as a risky choice, the operatives say.
3. Newsom has defended providing health care for undocumented immigrants because he supports universal health care — a mainstream position in the 2020 Democratic primary that some Democrats have abandoned.
4. Affordability, housing and homelessness remain big problems in California, despite Newsom initiatives as mayor and governor to address them.
5. The wealthy Getty family has been a key backer and funder of Newsom's political and business career, leading some of his opponents in California to call him a slick "Davos Democrat."

2. The scandals

• When he was San Francisco's mayor in early 2007, Newsom apologized for having an affair with his campaign manager's wife, who was also a subordinate in his mayoral office.
• Newsom subsequently went to alcohol counseling and said: "I have come to the conclusion that I will be a better person without alcohol in my life." (He later said he began drinking occasionally.)

During California's strict COVID lockdowns that he imposed as governor, Newsom in November 2020 attended a birthday dinner for a lobbyist and adviser at the posh French Laundry in Napa.

• He apologized and admitted attending the dinner was a "bad mistake." The incident fueled a movement to recall Newsom that he ultimately beat back.
• "French Laundry is never going away, an adviser to a potential 2028 rival told Axios. "It's one of the stickiest things ever."

Some of the Newsom's potential future rivals and other Democratic leaders have begun going public with attacks.

• California Rep. Ro Khanna, referring to Newsom's former chief of staff recently being charged with corruption, said the aide's indictments are a "toxic stain" on the state.

Between the lines: Newsom and his team are already working to fight such opposition.

• Newsom often emphasizes his beginnings as a small businessman with restaurants in the Bay Area.
• As progressives and moderates are clashing over the Democratic Party's direction, Newsom resists defining himself as a progressive or a moderate — instead saying he supports a big tent.
• He stands by some of his left-wing policies, but he also signed deregulatory legislation this year in a push to build more housing.

Newsom also has hosted right-wing figures such as Steve Bannon and the late Charlie Kirk on his podcast, which he launched this year. He emphasizes respectful conversation rather than heated debate — which has drawn criticism from some progressive Democrats.

What they're saying: A Newsom adviser called rival operatives' plotting against Newsom "ridiculous shadow boxing from overcaffeinated Beltway consultants."

• "Gavin Newsom and the millions of Democratic volunteers and activists who power our party are squarely focused on winning back the House and stopping Trump in 2026," the adviser said.
• " The D.C. consultants who are supposed to be running Dem campaigns should be too."

Newsom says his new book won't be a typical political memoir and will include details on "public and private moments that I'll always regret."

• "This is a story about a kid who always felt like he wasn't quite enough," Newsom says in a trailer promoting the book. "It's a story about living between two worlds — one of wealth and privilege — and the other a more modest upbringing."

Newsom told reporters Thursday that he and his team are somewhat worried about the reception to the book — and how opponents are likely to latch on to certain disclosures.

• "Just being honest, it comes with a cost," he said.
• He acknowledged that some may see a strategy behind it.
• "Look, I'm not an idiot," he said. "Everyone's going to see it through a cynical set of eyes — I mean, it's a politician writing a book."

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