Khanna ‘Seriously’ Considers 2028 Run With Progressive Agenda

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said he is “thinking seriously” about running for president in 2028, laying out a progressive economic agenda he argues could reshape the Democratic Party and address what he calls a “breaking point in America.” The Silicon Valley congressman made the remarks in an interview with NPR’s Steve Inskeep on the Newsmakers video podcast, describing the coming election as a pivotal moment that could lead to either a destructive revolution or a new economic order.

“If we don’t do something dramatically different, we may break,” the 49-year-old Khanna told NPR. “I’m the nice guy. I just want a new social contract. Have you met these folks in their 30s? They want pitchforks and torches. They want your scalps… politically.”

A Progressive Vision for the Party

Khanna acknowledged he sits around 2% in Democratic presidential polls, lacking the name recognition of other potential contenders including former Vice President Kamala Harris and California Gov. Gavin Newsom. But he argued that Democrats need to nominate a more progressive candidate who can usher in what he calls “America’s next New Deal” — an economic realignment agenda centered on taxing billionaire wealth.

“We’re in a second Gilded Age,” Khanna said. “We can tax them. We raise $4 trillion over 10 years. Let me tell you what that would get us. It would get us free childcare. It would get us free public college and free trade schools.”

The proposal would also fund an industrial investment bank, extend Medicare to age 50, and support a federal jobs program modeled on the Works Progress Administration. Khanna’s district in Silicon Valley holds approximately one-third of the nation’s wealth — roughly $20 trillion — a concentration he says underscores the urgency of his message.

“Is that the country we want? That one-third of the nation’s wealth is in my district?” he asked.

Courting the Progressive Wing

Khanna’s positioning comes as the Democratic Party experiences a significant internal battle between its centrist and progressive wings. Democratic socialist candidates have won notable primary victories in New York, Colorado, and Michigan in 2026, signaling a leftward shift in the party’s activist base. Khanna has been actively courting this energy, appearing with democratic socialist Chris Rabb in Philadelphia and endorsing progressive candidates including Abdul El-Sayed, who won a slim victory in Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary.

“I have never felt more than this moment that our wing, our politics, are on the ascendancy,” Khanna told The Dispatch. “We have the energy. We have the momentum.”

His recent five-day tour through Pennsylvania — including stops in Erie County, Washington County, and Philadelphia — was designed to test his economic ideas in a key swing state he calls a “homecoming” as a Bucks County native. The tour culminated in a speech outlining his “New Economic Patriotism” agenda, which also includes building 1,000 new trade schools, creating an industrial investment bank, and establishing a federal jobs program.

Standing Up to Tech Billionaires

Khanna has positioned himself as a vocal critic of tech billionaires Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Peter Thiel, arguing they represent a dangerous concentration of power. “These folks would have been the conquerors in a different era,” he said. “They kind of think of themselves as above you and I. And when I’m actually most inclined to run, I think, ‘I know these people.’ I understand the economic future, and I will have the guts to stand up to them.”

He has also proposed a “data center bill of rights” giving local communities the right to reject data centers, and has been a leading voice on the Epstein files disclosure, working with Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to push for full release of documents.

Red Lines and Controversies

Khanna has drawn sharp lines within his own party, calling the Laken Riley Act vote by nine swing-state Democrats “disqualifying” for future party leadership. “No one who voted for the Laken Riley Act should have any role in the future leadership of the Democratic party in this country,” he told The Bulwark. “It’s disqualifying, just like the Iraq War vote.”

He has also said he would prioritize legalization for undocumented immigrants in the first six months of a hypothetical administration, and has called for overturning Citizens United and banning members of Congress from trading stocks.

Khanna dismissed concerns about President Trump labeling Democrats as “communists,” saying, “Labels usually don’t matter in American politics… We’ve been calling the guy a fascist for 10 years and he’s won two terms.”

A Decade in the Making

Khanna’s potential candidacy has been years in the making. He has been laying groundwork for a presidential bid for nearly a decade through trips to key states including Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Georgia, and Arizona. He served as national campaign co-chair for Bernie Sanders in 2020 and was a Biden-Harris surrogate in 2024.

His political evolution has drawn both praise and criticism. Critics at UnHerd have accused him of “fair-weather radicalism,” pointing to his past as a wealthy “progressive capitalist” who praised Silicon Valley’s wealth creation. The Washington Free Beacon has highlighted the contradictions between his populist rhetoric and his family’s substantial wealth, including trusts worth tens of millions of dollars.

His stance on Israel has also evolved dramatically. Once a self-described “pro-Israel progressive,” Khanna now says he believes Israel committed genocide in Gaza and has called for ending military aid to Israel. A July visit to the West Bank, where he claimed he was briefly detained by Israeli settlers, drew both support and criticism — with the IDF disputing his account of events, as Al Jazeera reported.

What’s Next

The 2028 election will be the first since 2016 without an incumbent president on the ballot, as Trump is term-limited. The Democratic field is expected to be crowded, with potential candidates including Harris, Newsom, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, among others.

Khanna’s path forward involves building relationships in early primary states and swing states while consolidating support among the party’s progressive base. As NBC News has documented, his strategy has long involved connecting high-tech innovation with rural workers in deindustrialized communities.

“They said Lincoln had an engine of ambition that knew no rest,” Khanna said. “So I don’t apologize for ambition. The question is, is it ambition for a public purpose?”

Whether his progressive vision can break through in a crowded primary field remains an open question. But Khanna’s willingness to stake out bold positions — from taxing billionaires to ending foreign wars — ensures he will be a significant voice in the coming Democratic debate about the party’s future direction.