One of Kamala Harris’s biggest money men is already casting doubt on her next run. Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn co-founder, told a crowd in Washington that another bid is a “very challenging path.” That was the plan. He was supposed to be her loudest cheerleader. Instead, he is the first to say the odds are stacked against her.
Hoffman poured millions into her 2024 campaign and rallied Silicon Valley donors after Joe Biden quit, but now he is looking at other options. He even left the door open for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (yes, the same AOC many Democrats call too far left). Hoffman called her “pragmatic,” a word most Republicans would never use for her.
The conflict goes deeper than campaign cash; it reflects a party struggling to agree on who leads. According to Fox News, Hoffman said the 2028 field is going to be “very noisy.” He noted that if you want to help society and business, that is where the focus should be. He asked if AOC is pro-business. He called it a “question,” which is a polite way of saying he is not sure.
Meanwhile, the party is trying to unite behind a socialist in Michigan as Kamala Harris heads there to stump for Abdul El-Sayed. Per Breitbart, El-Sayed is a physician who once ran Detroit’s health department. He won a bitter primary that split the party over Israel and corporate money. According to the Washington Examiner, Harris is now trying to patch those wounds by attending a roundtable on black maternal health with him.
Kamala Harris to join Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan next week https://t.co/15RAyGk1sa
— POLITICO (@politico) September 16, 2026
Why does this matter? It shows the Democrats are still fighting their own civil war. According to Fox News, Republican strategist Mark Bednar sees a pattern. Per Fox News Digital, he stated that the notion of dousing Kamala with cold water to allow others to advance appears quite genuine. That is exactly what is happening.
Gavin Newsom said he will not run if Harris enters the 2028 race. Now Hoffman says the path is hard. They are not saying she is bad; they are saying she might not win. They are looking at AOC. They are looking at El-Sayed. They are looking at anyone but her.
White House communications director Steven Cheung hit back hard. He noted that Harris must truly reconsider her life decisions prior to seeking the presidency once more. That is a harsh message from the other side, and it shows that even her own donors are nervous.
