California Governor Gavin Newsom is consolidating early momentum in the 2028 Democratic presidential field. On the Kalshi prediction market, his probability of securing the party’s nomination has climbed to 31%, the highest of any contender. Data from rival platform Polymarket mirror the trend, assigning the governor a 31% chance, well ahead of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at 11% and Transportation Secretary-turned-commentator Pete Buttigieg at 7%. More than $16 million has been wagered on the Democratic race on Polymarket to date. Traditional polling is showing a similar shift. A new Morning Consult survey places Newsom at 19% support among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters nationwide, up sharply from 5% in March, while Vice President Kamala Harris leads with 29%. An Echelon Insights poll records a three-point monthly gain in Newsom’s favorability rating, and a separate survey reported by The Hill finds him narrowly ahead of Harris among Democrats in his home state. The strengthening numbers follow an aggressive national profile from the governor. In a live interview at Politico’s California Policy Summit on 28 August, Newsom warned that President Donald Trump is “setting up” to remain in office beyond his term and is “rigging the election in plain sight.” The remarks, coupled with his online parodies of Trump’s social-media style and his legal challenges to Republican-led redistricting, have heightened Newsom’s visibility inside the party. While the 2028 primary is still three years away, the convergence of prediction-market pricing and early polls positions Newsom as the Democratic field’s provisional frontrunner and underscores the appetite among some party activists for a combative foil to President Trump.