The outspoken media personality told CBS News he has not ruled out running for president in 2028.
Paul George comments on feud between Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James
Paul George comments on the drama between Stephen A. Smith and LeBron James.
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- ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith is considering running for president again.
- Smith said he is strongly considering taking the Democratic debate stage in 2027.
- He had previously expressed mixed feelings, saying he had no intention of becoming a politician but was “sick of this mess.”
- Smith has criticized the Democratic Party for appearing to be “leaderless” and lacking a decisive public voice.
Will he or won’t he?
ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith is flirting with the possibility of running for president again.
Smith, the 58-year-old “First Take” and SiriusXM radio host, said in a Feb. 15 interview with correspondent Robert Costa on CBS Sunday Morning that he has “no intention” of becoming a politician or running for office, but Smith, who is known for his verbose rants about sports (including NBA great LeBron James) and politics (including President Donald Trump) in general, can’t rule out that possibility.
According to Costa’s Feb. 13 post on X, Smith teased the interview by saying he would run for the Democratic nomination, saying, “I confess I am strongly considering taking the debate stage in 2027.”
“This year we are approaching 2026 and we need to think about it, study it and know the issues,” Smith told Costa.
Smith’s latest comments come nearly a year after he publicly announced his intention to run for president.
“It’s time to stop fooling around. Life is beautiful, especially on ESPN/Disney,” Smith said in an April 7, 2025, post to the X Show. “I hate the idea of being a politician, but I’m tired of this mess. So I’m officially leaving all doors open.”
A month ago, Smith told USA TODAY that he “doesn’t care about the office” and said he preferred sparring with political leaders rather than being them.
But since then, Smith has gone back and forth about his possible presidential bid on various platforms and to people who have approached him with the question. During an appearance on ABC’s “This Week” on July 27, 2025, Smith told ABC News’ Jonathan Karl that the Democratic Party is “in a really bad place right now because it looks like we don’t have a leader.”
“Donald Trump is leading with one party or the other. You can argue with him. Yes, no one can argue with him. He is the leader of the Republican Party and the Republican Party. Don’t get me wrong, the Democrats don’t have a leader,” Smith said. :We — I see — who — who is your leader? Who is it? Is it AOC? Are you Bernie Sanders? Are you Jasmine Crockett? Who is it? We respect many people on Capitol Hill.
“I’m not here to disagree with individuals by any means, but as an organization, the Democratic Party looks very bad right now because it looks like it’s leaderless,” Smith said. “They don’t have a definitive voice that everyone can trust.
“For example, if we look to 2028, we have people like Governor Wes Moore, who I really like and who I think is very capable, and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who I like and think is very capable.
“But when it comes to the public voice for the Democratic Party, it literally doesn’t exist. There’s no one right now,” Smith continued.
Smith previously said he was “officially leaving all doors open” after rejecting the idea of running for president. But past polls have shown that media personalities known for their harsh opinions have a long way to go to win over voters.
As for Trump, the president said last year that he would “love to see” Smith run.
“I love watching him. He has great entertainment skills, which is very important. People are paying attention to him,” Trump said at NewsNation’s Town Hall on April 30, 2025. “I’m good at picking people and picking candidates. Let me tell you, I’d love to see him run.”
Contributed by USA TODAY’s Philip M. Bailey.
