CNN’s Harry Enten delivered a blunt warning for Democrats eyeing 2028: there is no clear frontrunner, and the party’s field remains wide open in what he described as "a total clown car."
New polling shows that even the leading contenders are stuck within the margin of error, a sign of deep uncertainty. Enten noted that Democrats haven’t faced this kind of unsettled primary landscape at this stage of a race since 1992, with figures like Gavin Newsom, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Pete Buttigieg all failing to break away from the pack.
🚨 BREAKING: Even CNN was just forced to report Gavin Newsom is FLAILING ahead of 2028
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) February 24, 2026
"It's a TOTAL CLOWN CAR!" 😂
"A TOTAL MESS. Down he goes! He's definitely flailing."
Newsom's odds are GOING DOWN, especially as he insinuates black people are dumb and illiterate 🤡 pic.twitter.com/by1EhWmpGv
"This is just a downright clown car at this point on the Democratic side," Enten revealed on Tuesday. "I mean, just take a look here. Top choices for the 2028 Dem pres nominee. You have a leader, but it's not really a clear leader. It's within the margin of error. You have Newsom at 19 percent. Then you have former Vice President Kamala Harris at 18 percent. Quite a weak number for her, given that, of course, she was the nominee last time around. Pete Buttigieg, who of course has run before, 13 percent. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at 12 percent."
"This is just a total clown car," he said. "It is a total mess. There is no clear frontrunner at this particular point on the Democratic side. Who the heck knows who the nominee is going to be in three, two years?"
"It's been a long time since we've had a Democratic race like this," the CNN host added.
Enten added that Democrats haven’t confronted a primary field this unsettled, with no clear frontrunner, since 1992, warning that the party has yet to get its act together.
"Yeah, it has been a long time," Enten said. "This is very unusual for the Democratic side to not have a clear frontrunner at this point. National early poll leader at least 25 percent. Look at this. This year, we get the giant question mark. No one, no one, no one, no one. In 2021, there was no incumbent. It was Joe Biden who was there. Hillary Clinton in both 08 and 16. And Al Gore in both 2000 and 2004 at this point, where at least at 25 percent of the early polls. You have to go all the way back, all the way back from when I wasn't even in elementary school yet, not even in pre-K yet, to 1992. That was the last cycle in which there was no clear frontrunner at this point."
It remains unclear whether Democrats will ultimately rally around their progressive flank, double down on their anti-Trump message, or pivot toward a more moderate standard-bearer. Much of that decision may hinge on the outcome of the 2026 midterms, which is bound to shape the party’s direction and determine who emerges as its leader heading into 2028.
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