Of the many narratives surrounding why Democratic challenger Kamala Harris lost the 2024 Presidential election to Republican nominee Donald Trump, Trump’s ability to harness previously “apolitical” spaces like sports podcasts and “men-focused media” was seen as one of the most influential.
Perhaps not surprisingly, many Democratic politicians, including several tagged as the potential 2028 nominee for president, are now flocking to sports media to connect with their constituents.
On Sunday, Reid J. Epstein, Katie Glueck, and Kellen Browning wrote in the New York Times about the trend of Democrats embracing their sports fandoms and inserting themselves into those discussions.
“Josh from Abington,” a.k.a. Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro, is a regular SportsRadio 94WIP caller who often stops by to praise the Philadelphia Eagles and lament the current state of the 76ers. He also worked as a game analyst for a Pitttsburgh-Syracuse basketball game and appears on several other Philly-based sports podcasts.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore regularly calls into Baltimore and Washington sports radio and hasn’t been shy about suggesting what the Washington Commanders should do about their new stadium.
The Times noted that Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is also ramping up to make the rounds for the upcoming Kentucky Derby.
There’s also Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who made much of his high school football coaching past and affinity for the Minnesota Vikings (and disdain for the Green Bay Packers) while running as a VP candidate in the last election.
Minnesota Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appeared on the “Locked on Lions” podcast last year and recently publicly honored legendary Michigan sports fan Andy Isaac.
According to them, the point of all these appearances isn’t to push an agenda or make a case for their candidacies. It’s about letting people know they’re obsessive sports fans, just like many others.
“It takes the politics out of it,” said Gov. Walz. “When I go out there and go on those shows, it shows you’re a real human being and it connects with people on something they care about.”
“Talking about sports, going to watch sports and talking to people as you meet them about sports, just shows that you, too, are a normal human being,” said Beshear.
This comes on the heels of President Trump ramping up his forays into the sports world, having recently attended the Daytona 500 and Super Bowl while posthumously pardoning Pete Rose and pushing for him to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Trump has also inserted himself into the PGA-LIV negotiations on several occasions.
As the Times notes, Harris struggled to integrate herself into the sports media space during the last election. Deputy Harris campaign manager Rob Flaherty admitted that the campaign was spurned by several liberal and agnostic podcasters who didn’t want to mix their content with politics. While Harris appeared on All the Smoke and Club Shay Shay, she was reportedly turned down by The Bill Simmons Podcast and New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce. Pat McAfee says he turned down offers to have Harris and Trump on the show and Dave Portnoy said he turned down Harris as well (but has interviewed Trump). Harris’s campaign was also unable to finalize deals to appear on Hot Ones and The Joe Rogan Experience. The campaign tried to get then-ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski to break the news of Tim Walz becoming Harris’ VP pick, but they were scooped before it could potentially happen.
Stephen A. Smith has walked a strange tightrope in recent weeks, claiming he doesn’t want to be the Democratic nominee in 2028 but also thinking he could defeat anyone who did run. ESPN’s newly minted $100 million man has also made himself a player in the space between sports media and political media. Shapiro, Moore, New York Representative Hakeem Jeffries, former New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, and California representative Ro Khanna have all spoken with Smith recently.
Given the push to blur the lines between politics and sports, one has to wonder if Smith’s political play isn’t to become a politician but instead a political kingmaker.
However it plays out, the recent election and lessons learned from it should be a stark lesson to the “stick to sports” crew that the line they thought existed (but never really did) between politics and sports is breaking down and may have already crumbled. The reality of that claim was always that ‘politics in sports are okay so long as they’re the politics I agree with,’ but this recent push appears much simpler than that. This is just about politicians letting you know that they’re just as fired up (or pissed off) about your local NFL team or college football squad as you are. They’re not just here to pander, wave an American flag, and leave at halftime.
“As [Kentucky] governor, you have two jobs when it comes to collegiate basketball,” Beshear recently said. “No. 1, to root for your in-state schools, and No. 2, to root against Duke.”
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.