Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly will make a decision on whether to run in the 2028 presidential race sometime after the midterm elections, he told supporters on Wednesday, leaving the door open to an eventual run.
While campaigning with Democratic Senate candidate Troy Jackson in Maine on Wednesday, supporters from the crowd began pushing the senator on whether he’d consider a White House bid in the upcoming presidential cycle. Kelly kept the door open on a possible run, but declined to give a decisive answer.
“I am thinking about it, I’m considering it,” Kelly said. “I’ll make a decision after this election sometime, at the appropriate time.”
Kelly’s remarks come at a crucial juncture for his political career. The first-term senator is up for reelection in 2028, putting him at a crossroads to decide either to run for a second term in the Senate or throw his hat in the ring for president.
Kelly could theoretically run for both as Arizona state law allows presidential candidates to simultaneously run for federal office.
That could give the Arizona senator, who has become a top contender in Democratic circles to run for president, some leeway before cementing himself in one field over the other. Kelly has until March 20, 2028, to submit signatures for the Senate race — after some presidential primaries have already taken place, allowing Kelly to gauge his position in the national field.
Kelly is already a well-circulated name in the search for a Democratic nominee. Recent polling for the Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics show the Arizona senator is near the top of the pack when comparing the top contenders for the party nomination.
About 17% of Utah voters say Kelly would be one of their top three choices as well as 14% of voters nationwide, placing him fifth-highest on the list out of 12 potential candidates.
But polling doesn’t show any one candidate with a clear lead in the upcoming primary, underscoring that Democratic voters don’t have an apparent leader just yet. That could open the path for Kelly, especially if he gets an early start in the 2028 cycle.