Kamala Harris Returns to California With Cloudy Political Future

Now former Vice President Kamala Harris announced on Monday that she and her husband Doug Emhoff will be heading back to her Brentwood home in Los Angeles following the handover of the office to newly installed Vice President J.D. Vance.

Harris’ return to California comes at a time where there is great speculation on what her political future will be. Close aides have said that she is stuck deciding between a 2026 California Gubernatorial run or giving it another go in running for President in 2028. A more permanent return to California instead of staying in Washington could signal a possible shift towards a 2026 run.

However, her husband’s plans only add additional questions. According to Emhoff, he will return to his legal career, although with a different law firm than before. Before being the second husband, Emhoff had been with DLA Piper, working from their Century City office in Los Angeles. While the name of his next firm has not been announced, it is known that he will be spending time between Los Angeles and New York, with Harris expected to go with him to New York at least some of the time.

This has necessitated Harris and Emhoff in getting an apartment at Manhattan, possibly signaling building up an East Coast presence before 2028. Not much else is known about either of their plans beyond Harris writing a book about her time as Vice President and her also finally deciding what she wants to do for her next political step. Teaching or lobbying work may be an option as well, but so far neither of those have been seriously considered, although her husband did teach at Georgetown while he was second husband as a Distinguished Visitor from Practice.

Despite just leaving Washington, the clock is still ticking for Harris. Five big name Democrats have already announced Gubernatorial runs for 2026, with former Congresswoman Katie Porter and at least one big name Republican expected to join in the race later this year. 2028 can likewise be tricky, as many Democratic candidates are expected to make runs, with possibles including former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro. Someone who lost in 2024 may not be seen as a particularly strong candidate.

“In the short-term, Harris will probably still be seen in the public’s eye,” explained gubernatorial pollster Guillermo Williams to the Globe on Monday. “She lives in Brentwood right by the Palisades fire zone, so she could become a leading advocate there. It would honestly be a smart move, helping people recover, working to be an advocate for them, and also making a potential future 2028 rival, Newsom, look even worse. She could say “I never stopped fighting for you.”

“But that would be the smart option. More likely, she’ll make some appearances for it, but will focus more on writing a book, travelling with her husband, and doing things she was not able to do as Vice President.

“Odds are is that she wants to be President again, but may give Governor another go. But it could parallel Richard Nixon too. He was Vice President, ran for President, lost, ran for Governor, lost, then spent six years as a lawyer rebuilding his reputation. Harris doesn’t want that trajectory to becoming President. But becoming Governor would also mark a comeback for her too if she wins. And, like Nixon, she is building up a New York presence too.

“We’ll get some announcements later this year, but for now, she is likely just going to decompress from being Vice President and a Presidential candidate for awhile.”