Stephen A. Smith: The Ralph Nader of 2028? Perhaps a reminder of how far left the party has gone? Or both?
Whichever one, Republicans can always hope.
In an interview and a social media post on Monday, Smith, a longtime ESPN pundit and radio-show host, said he was no longer ruling out a run for public office — and that office would be the presidency.
“I have no desire to do it,” Smith said in an interview from Las Vegas on Monday, per Barrett Media.
“I’m living a pretty good life right now. Life’s been good. The last thing that I would want to do is involve myself in politics. I’ve always perceived politicians as being professional beggars.
“I don’t say that derogatorily or anything like that. It’s just the reality,” he continued.
“You’ve always got your hand out for something. People always need favors in return. I’m not that guy. So I could never see myself as a politician.”
However, he said that big names in the Democratic Party had been in contact with him.
“Over the last few weeks, I’ve had no choice but to get more serious about it,” he shared. “I’ve been approached by people on Capitol Hill. I’ve been approached by people who are elected officials in office, whether it’s governors or mayors or what have you.
Would you vote for Stephen A. Smith?
“People have legitimately, seriously, asked me about it,” he said.
“I have no desire to be a politician, but I’ve decided that I’m no longer going to close that door. I’m gonna keep my options open. I’m going to entertain the possibility.
“If it comes in late 2026, 2027, where I look at this country and think it’s an absolute mess and there’s legitimate reason to believe … that I indeed have a legitimate shot to win the presidency of the United States. I am not going to rule it out.”
Smith said that his lack of background in politics would enable him to “eat [other candidates] alive” — and judging by the candidates he named, it’s pretty clear he’s running as a Democrat. According to Barrett Media, Smith named Govs. Wes Moore of Maryland, Gavin Newsom of California, and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania as potential challengers.
On X, he shared a link to the article, with a confirmation that this wasn’t idle speculation.
“Time to stop messing around. Life is great. Especially at ESPN/Disney,” he said. “Hate the thought of being a politician. But sick of this mess.
“So I’m officially leaving all doors open,” he concluded.
Time to stop messing around. Life is great. Especially at ESPN/Disney. Hate the thought of being a politician. But sick of this mess.
So I’m officially leaving all doors open https://t.co/n6BmAOKjiv
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) April 7, 2025
According to the U.K.’s Daily Mail, a Rasmussen Reports poll among 1,000 likely voters released last week found that Smith had a credible chance at the Democratic nomination, too — with him trailing Newsom by three points and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York by four. In a hypothetical match-up with Vice President J.D. Vance, he trails by four, 38 percent to 34 percent.
The only time he trails significantly is when he’s compared with former Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination — and then, he’s still behind by 45 percent to 24 percent. That’s still not bad for a guy who was polling at 2 percent before.
And while Smith has eviscerated Republicans, it’s worth noting he’s an identified Democrat, so that’s par for the course. Rather, it’s his criticisms of too-woke Democrats that would likely hit the hardest were he to run.
Last month, he chastised Democrats for not giving voters a substantive message, saying that “rather than telling us what we should vote against, maybe you should present us with options of what to vote for.”
He went on to say that “I’m a centrist” and that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was correct to not shut the government down: “Didn’t you know that when a government shutdown takes place, whatever party supports the government shutdown is who gets blamed?” Smith said. “It don’t even matter how right you are!”
When Kamala Harris wasn’t taking interviews in the wake of being the heir apparent to the top of the Democratic ticket last summer, he called her out for not taking interviews: “The only damn place we’ve seen Kamala Harris is at pep rallies!” he said. “What’s up [with that]? Somebody gotta say something, and it can’t just be the conservatives.”
And he’s not taken with a case of Trump Derangement Syndrome™, either, noting that the president had a mandate after the November election.
“Let me be very clear, I’m no supporter of Trump. I’m a supporter of truth and the facts,” Smith said during an appearance on “The View.” “Here’s the facts: The man won every swing state. He increased the voter turnout in his favor from the standpoint of blacks, Latinos, and young voters … 89 percent of the counties shifted to the right.”
“That’s a mandate. We can sit up there and play around if we want to,” he said.
.@stephenasmith on why he considers Pres. Trump’s 2024 win a “mandate”: “It wasn’t about [Trump]. They were voting against what the Democrats were throwing in their direction.” pic.twitter.com/ODnckgDO40
— The View (@TheView) March 4, 2025
Now, if I were paid to advise this man, I’d probably do it as Stephen A. Smith would: The Democrats are horr-uh-BLE. The Democrats are terr-uh-BLE. … How-ev-UH! … you have no chance! You have no chance! Zero!
Anti-establishment candidates don’t win primaries. The two-party machinery exists largely to ensure this. Donald Trump is the exception to the rule, and this was a man who spent the better part of the 21st century preparing himself for a 2016 run that required all of his opponents to write him off until he won. He’s also spent the better part of eight years reshaping the party apparatus to make his popular, but anti-establishment, platform acceptable — at no small cost, it must be noted.
And just that’s the GOP side; those who don’t remember the 2008 campaign might have forgotten the role that unpledged superdelegates — who now can’t vote on the first ballot, but can vote on subsequent ballots — play in the Democratic process, which keeps establishment candidates in the race for far longer than they otherwise would be.
Smith is not a star of the magnitude that Trump was, either. His relevant experience is opining, not doing, which is another key difference; before being the chief executive of America, the current president had been the chief executive of the Trump Organization and had tested the waters of many different enterprises — sometimes successfully, sometimes not, but always gaining experience, one can assume. For all of his hot takes on why the Jets are hot garbage, Smith has little of this acumen.
But man, wouldn’t it be great to see him crash the Democratic presidential party with some harsh truth? It’d be entertaining to watch Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris, Wes Moore, Pete Buttigieg, and whoever else they can dredge up try to dance around someone who’s not drinking the Kool-Aid. Also, if he doesn’t win the primary race, there’s always a third-party run. And if you think the libs hate Ralph Nader for siphoning off potential Al Gore votes, hell will hath no fury like the left if Smith delivers the presidency to J.D. Vance or someone else of similar bearing.
For better and worse (mostly better), 2028 is a long way off, and we still have a few more years of Trump. A Republican can always hope for such a spectacle, though.
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