Poll twist: Kamala Harris trails in 2028 race, but frontrunner fails with black voters - who is the person?

Pete Butigieg, former US Transportation secretary might be the front runner for Democrat’s presidential nominee race, as new polls suggest he is ahead of Former VP Kamala Harris, with 16 percent of blue voters in his favour

Kamala Harris is in second place with 13% support. The poll shows a big issue for Buttigieg – he got 0% support from Black voters. This is not the first time Buttigieg has led a 2028 poll. Another poll by Atlas Intel on May 30, 2025, also showed him as the top Democratic candidate, according to the MassLive report.

In third place is California Governor Gavin Newsom with 12% support. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez from New York and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro are tied next with 7% support each. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who ran in 2016 and 2020, is at 5% support. He is 83 years old now. The largest group of Democratic voters – 23% – are still undecided about who they want, as per the report MassLive.


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Voter demographics

Kamala Harris has the strongest support from Black voters – 30.1% said they back her. Harris also leads among voters with high school education or less, getting 23.9% support. Buttigieg does best with white voters (22.1%) and those with college degrees (20.1%), as per reports.

He also leads among people with vocational/technical school education – 12.7%, associate degrees – 18.5%, postgraduate education or higher – 12.7%. Buttigieg has 0% support from Black voters, which could be a serious problem. Gavin Newsom is most popular with, latino voters – 21.1%, asian voters – 13.4%, as stated by MassLive.

Age breakdown

Buttigieg is the top choice for middle-aged voters:

• Ages 40-49 – 15.2%
  
• Ages 50-59 – 21.2%
  
• Also popular with 70+ voters – 20%
  

Newsom is most popular with 60-69-year-olds – 18.3%.Ocasio-Cortez leads among young voters aged 18-29 – 22.7%. Kamala Harris is the top pick for 30-39-year-olds – 18.7%, as per reports.

The Emerson College poll was done June 24–25, 2025. 404 people answered the Democratic primary questions, as mentioned in the report by MassLive.

FAQs

Q1. Who is leading the 2028 Democratic presidential primary poll?
Pete Buttigieg is currently leading the 2028 Democratic primary poll with 16% support from Democratic voters.

Q2. Is Kamala Harris the top choice for Democrats in 2028?
No, Kamala Harris is in second place with 13% support, behind Pete Buttigieg in the latest poll.