CNN Data Shows Gavin Newsom’s Strategy Against Trump Is ‘Absolutely’ Paying Off
CNN Chief Data Analyst Harry Enten showed off numbers on Tuesday that suggest California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s confrontational strategy against President Donald Trump is paying off.
Reacting to Newsom’s recent social media posts attacking Trump and parodying the president’s all-caps rants, CNN anchor Laura Coates questioned, “Has this actually been working for Newsom?”
Enten replied, “I think it absolutely has been working in terms of generating attention, which is what he’s trying to do, right? I mean, take a look here.”
CNN’s chief data analyst then showed that the X account for Newsom’s press office had received a 450% increase in followers since June, while Google searches for Newsom were up 1,300% since June 1 and 500% since August 1.
“So the bottom line is, in politics, especially if you’re thinking of entering in 2028, it’s all about generating attention,” Enten explained. “And so far, Gavin Newsom has done a good job at generating attention.”
CNN also displayed a graphic that showed Newsom’s chance of being the 2028 Democratic presidential nominee rose from just 11% in June to 24% today, according to the Kalshi prediction market, placing his odds considerably above Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) (13%) and former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg (8%) – two potential candidates he was previously tied almost neck-and-neck with.
“So at least at this particular point, the prediction markets say yes. Yes, this strategy is paying off,” Enten declared.
Polls also showed that since 2017, Democrats have overwhelmingly shifted from wanting their leaders to work with the Republican Party to wanting to “stop the GOP.”
A 2017 poll showed that 74% of Democrats wanted Democratic leaders to work with the Republican Party, versus just 42% in 2025. 57% of Democrats in 2025 said they wanted their leaders to “stop the GOP.”
“That is a major shift,” Enten acknowledged.
On Monday, Fox News co-host Dana Perino urged Newsom to “put the phone away,” arguing he had to “be a little bit more serious” and stop “making a fool” of himself if he wanted to run for president in 2028.
Watch above via CNN.
