Jim Clyburn 2028 Endorsement Race Begins as Hopefuls Call After Midterms
The race for one of the most sought after endorsements in the 2028 Democratic presidential contest has already started. Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina told Politico Playbook that he received four phone calls the day after the 2026 midterm elections from people who hope to run for president in 2028. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro was among the callers, Clyburn said in an exclusive interview with Playbook reporter Dasha Burns for The Conversation. Clyburn did not name the other three callers. His message was clear all the same. The contest for his support is open, it is early, and the hopefuls are not waiting.
Quick Facts
| Detail | What we know |
|---|---|
| Report date | November 6, 2026, in Politico Playbook |
| Interview | Jim Clyburn spoke with Dasha Burns for The Conversation |
| Phone calls | Four calls the day after the 2026 midterm elections, from 2028 hopefuls |
| Named caller | Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro |
| Other recent contacts | Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona |
| Campaign trail contacts | Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock |
| Clyburn age | 86 |
| Reelection result | Won on November 3, 2026, with 180,559 votes, or 69.35 percent, against Republican John Peterson with 79,497 votes |
| Time in Congress | In the House since winning his seat in 1992, now serving his 17th term |
| District | Runs from Columbia to Charleston in South Carolina |
| Why it matters | South Carolina goes first on the Democratic presidential primary calendar, and his endorsement helped rescue Joe Biden presidential campaign in 2020 |
Why the Clyburn Endorsement Carries So Much Weight
In presidential politics, few endorsements carry the kind of weight that Jim Clyburn’s endorsement carries in a Democratic primary. The reason is simple. Clyburn has spent more than three decades building trust with voters in South Carolina, and South Carolina now holds the first spot on the Democratic presidential primary calendar. A candidate who wins there starts the race with momentum, with news coverage, and with a story that donors and voters in other states can understand at once.
The clearest example came in 2020. Joe Biden presidential campaign was struggling before the South Carolina primary. His early results had been weak, his money was tight, and many people in Washington were already writing him off. Then Clyburn endorsed him, and Biden won South Carolina by a wide margin. That win changed the shape of the race in a matter of days. Rivals dropped out, donors returned, and Biden went on to win the nomination and then the White House. The lesson stuck. For any Democrat who wants to run in 2028, the path still runs through South Carolina, and the path through South Carolina still runs through Jim Clyburn.
Four Calls the Day After the Election
Clyburn told Dasha Burns that he fielded four phone calls the day after the election from 2028 hopefuls. He did not say much about what was said on those calls, and he did not name all four callers. The one name he did share was Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. That single detail was enough to set off a fresh round of talk in Washington, because Shapiro is one of the most talked about names in any early list of possible 2028 candidates.
Shapiro leads a large and closely watched swing state, and he won his race for governor by a wide margin. He is a skilled campaigner, a strong fundraiser, and a familiar face on national television. A call from Shapiro does not mean that Clyburn has made up his mind, and it does not mean that Shapiro has decided to run. It does mean that Shapiro wanted to be in touch early, and that he wanted Clyburn to know it. In a race where timing can matter as much as policy, that is a real signal.
Who Else Clyburn Has Been in Touch With
Beyond the four calls, Clyburn named several other Democrats he has recently been in touch with, and several more he spent time with on the campaign trail. The names matter, but the way he described each contact also matters, because each one was different. Some were recent conversations. Others were time spent together while campaigning for midterm candidates. None of them, on their own, amounts to an endorsement, and none of them should be read as one.
Clyburn said he has recently been in touch with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona. Pritzker leads one of the largest states in the country, and he has been a major donor and a vocal figure in national Democratic politics. Kelly is a former astronaut and a senator from a swing state, and he has built a national profile of his own. Both men are often mentioned in early talk about 2028. A recent conversation is not a call on the day after the election, and Clyburn did not present it as one. The distinction is important, and it is one this article will keep.
What It Will Take to Win Him Over
Clyburn is already laying out what it will take to win him over, and that is one of the most useful parts of the interview. He is not keeping his thinking secret, and he is not waiting for the field to form before he speaks. He is telling the hopefuls, in public, that his support has to be earned. That message will shape how the candidates act in the months ahead, because they now know that a phone call is only a start.
There is another point that should not be missed. Clyburn is 86, and he has just won reelection to a 17th term. He is not a newcomer to this process, and he is not someone who can be rushed into a decision. He has watched presidential primaries from the inside for decades, and he knows how quickly a front runner can fade and how quickly an underdog can rise. His pace will be his own. The hopefuls can call, they can visit, and they can make their case. The decision, when it comes, will come on his timetable.
South Carolina Goes First, and Clyburn Just Won Again
The calendar is the reason this story matters so much, and it is worth stating plainly. South Carolina goes first on the Democratic presidential primary calendar. That means the first real votes in the 2028 Democratic race will be cast by South Carolina voters, and the first winner will be crowned there. A win in South Carolina does not guarantee the nomination, but it gives a candidate a head start that is hard to match. It brings money, media attention, and a sense of momentum that can carry into the next states.
Clyburn’s own standing in the state was on display on November 3, 2026, when he won reelection to the House. He beat Republican John Peterson with 180,559 votes, or 69.35 percent, to 79,497 votes. That is a wide margin, and it came in a midterm year when many races were close. He has held the seat since winning it in 1992, and he is now serving his 17th term. His district runs from Columbia to Charleston, and it covers communities that have known him for a generation.
What Happens Next in the Endorsement Race
At some point, the field will narrow. Some names that are talked about now will fade, and others that are barely mentioned now will rise. That is normal in a presidential primary, and it is one more reason not to treat an early phone call as a prediction. A call is a sign of interest, not a sign of victory. For now, the story is simple. Four hopefuls called the day after the midterms. One of them was Josh Shapiro. Clyburn has also been in touch with JB Pritzker and Mark Kelly, and he spent time on the trail with Wes Moore, Andy Beshear, and Raphael Warnock. He is laying out what it will take to win him over, and he is doing it while fresh from a strong reelection win at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many 2028 hopefuls called Jim Clyburn after the midterms?
Clyburn said he fielded four phone calls the day after the 2026 midterm elections from people who hope to run for president in 2028. He named only one of the four callers in the interview, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. The other three callers were not named, so they should not be guessed at or treated as confirmed.
Why does Jim Clyburn’s endorsement matter so much in a Democratic primary?
South Carolina goes first on the Democratic presidential primary calendar, so the first votes in the race are cast there. Clyburn has represented the state in Congress since 1992, and he is a trusted voice with voters across South Carolina. His endorsement helped rescue Joe Biden presidential campaign in 2020, when Biden won South Carolina and then went on to win the nomination.
Did Clyburn say he has spoken with JB Pritzker and Mark Kelly about 2028?
Clyburn said he has recently been in touch with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona. He did not describe those contacts as calls on the day after the election, and he did not say that either man called him as one of the four hopefuls. The careful reading is that Pritzker and Kelly are recent contacts, while Shapiro is the only confirmed caller named in the interview.
What did Clyburn do on the campaign trail with Wes Moore, Andy Beshear, and Raphael Warnock?
Clyburn noted spending time on the campaign trail with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock during the midterm campaign season. That time together is different from a private phone call about 2028. It shows contact and a working relationship, but it is not, on its own, a sign that any of the three has asked for his endorsement or that he has offered it.
Sources
For more on the races and leadership contests shaping Washington after the midterms, read the Mississippi Senate race where Scott Colom leads Hyde-Smith with the result still uncalled, Elizabeth Warren expected to chair the Senate Banking Committee in January, and Chris Van Hollen withholding support for Schumer as Senate leader.
Final Thoughts
The Clyburn endorsement race has started earlier than most people expected, and it has started with a phone call, not a rally. Four hopefuls rang the day after the midterms, and Josh Shapiro was the one name Clyburn chose to share. The rest of the field is still taking shape, and the other names in his orbit, from Pritzker and Kelly to Moore, Beshear, and Warnock, show how wide that field could be. What happens next will depend on who shows up in South Carolina, who listens, and who earns the trust of voters there. Clyburn has set the terms in public. Now the hopefuls have to meet them, one visit and one conversation at a time.
