Allies of California Congressman Ro Khanna launched a draft effort called Run Ro two days after the midterms. Former Congressman Jamaal Bowman and progressive activist Nomiki Konst are co-chairs. The group can raise money and organize support while Khanna decides whether to run. He has not entered the race. He has said he will decide with his family after the holidays.
What Khanna Has Said
Khanna welcomed the draft. He said he is honored that people are encouraging him to run on Medicare for All, ending foreign wars, and taxing billionaires. He has called for “America’s Next New Deal.” On television this week he confirmed he is thinking about it. He has visited early primary states for months. He co-chaired Bernie Sanders’ 2020 campaign. He has also pushed for the release of Epstein-related files and opposed the Iran war. He has described the 2028 election as a potential breaking point that could produce either a new economic order or something more radical.
To be fair, Ro Khanna seems to think there’s someone interested in him becoming the president, so we’re not dealing with a person who’s extremely in touch, here.
— Steve Kerins (@SteveKerins) November 8, 2026
Where He Stands in the Numbers
National surveys of Democratic primary voters have put Khanna at 1 to 2 percent. One July survey showed Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at 13 percent and Khanna at 2 percent. An earlier national poll had Ocasio-Cortez at 26 percent and Khanna under 1 percent. Prediction markets list him near the bottom of the field. He is a fifth-term House member from a Silicon Valley district. Only one person has ever been elected president directly from the House.
Progressive Democrats have launched a campaign to get Hindu Indian Rep. Ro Khanna to run for president in 2028.
Former Rep. Jamaal Bowman and others are heading the effort.
Follow: @AFpost https://t.co/n6Ono8Lttc
— AF Post (@AFpost) November 7, 2026
The Obstacles
The progressive lane already has better-known figures. Ocasio-Cortez has higher name recognition and stronger polling. Khanna’s fundraising base is untested at the national level. He would enter a field that already includes governors, senators, and a former vice president who lead in every public survey. His support for a California billionaire tax has drawn opposition even inside his own state. Colleagues in the House have noted his ambitions, but none have moved to clear the field for him.
The Likelihood He Runs
The draft committee exists because its organizers believe progressives need an early vehicle before better-funded candidates lock up donors. Khanna has not closed the door. He has said roughly twenty Democrats are looking at the race and that half of them will probably run. A decision after the holidays is the timeline he has given. Whether that decision is a formal candidacy or an endorsement of someone else remains open. The early numbers and the historical record of House members seeking the presidency both point to a long-shot bid if he enters.
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