Governor. Gavin Newsom leaves Monday for New Hampshire, the state that has been one of the most important tests for presidential candidates for decades.
Newsom plans to campaign for president Joe Biden. and Democrats at the state and local level.
“We look forward to welcoming Governor Newsom to New Hampshire to campaign on behalf of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris and to defeat him again. Donald Trump” said Ray Buckley, chairman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party.
More than 200 people have registered for the event.
The California governor’s trip comes as President Joe Biden is under fire for his lackluster performance at the June 27 debate. The trip was scheduled before last week’s presidential debate.
Newsom is a vocal Biden supporter. Biden trailed former President Donald Trump in New Hampshire, 44% to 42%, in the June 28-29 Saint Anselm College Survey, following last week’s debate. Biden outpolled Trump by 7 percentage points in 2020.
Newsom has been repeatedly mentioned as a candidate to replace Biden if the president were to leave office. He has created the kind of fundraising infrastructure that potential presidential candidates have used, traveling the country to promote himself as a spokesman for the national party.
The governor has repeatedly said he will not run for president this year. He was a key spokesperson at the debate site in Atlanta and a staunch defender of Biden.
Democratic governors across the country have publicly thrown their support behind the embattled president and plan to meet with Biden on Wednesday.
The governors participated in a conference call Monday hosted by Minnesota Gov. Tom Walz, chairman of the Democratic Governors Association.
The call involved only governors, not staff or campaign officials. Biden’s campaign team was briefed in advance of the call.
Newsom was not present at the Monday meeting. It is not clear whether he will attend the Wednesday meeting.
A person familiar with the call, who asked not to be identified because the governors want to keep the conversation private, said: “Democratic governors have been among the most proactive and vocal supporters of the president and vice president because they have seen how the Biden-Harris administration’s accomplishments directly benefit their residents.”
The source added: “The Biden-Harris team is in constant contact with the governors and their teams, including about yesterday’s meeting.”
