Is Cory Booker running for president? His travel plans suggest he is.
The New Jersey Democrat will head to South Carolina Friday for the first of two events in the key presidential state.

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker — fresh from an easy reelection win on Tuesday — announced Thursday he is making two stops in South Carolina this month, in the clearest sign yet he intends to run for president again in 2028.
The New Jersey Democrat has yet to officially announce his candidacy, but he was the first in the likely crowded field to schedule appearances in South Carolina, which will host the first 2028 presidential primary contest, in the wake of Democrats’ big wins on Tuesday.
Booker will speak at the Sumter County NAACP Freedom Fund Banquet on Friday and the Charleston Branch of the NAACP’s annual Freedom Fund Gala on Nov. 20, according to the announcement Thursday.
Booker defeated long-shot candidate Justin Murphy of Burlington County by 26 percentage points on Tuesday.
(Other potential 2028 Democratic candidates, including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff, also won by double digits Tuesday in more competitive swing state states).
Booker focused most of his attention on campaigning for others, including Reps.-elect Rebecca Bennett and Zack Mullock, who defeated incumbent Republicans Tom Kean Jr. and Jeff Van Drew in New Jersey’s two swing districts.
He also hit the trail in South Carolina for Democrat Annie Andrews, who won the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Darline Graham, the sister of Sen. Lindsay Graham, who died earlier this year.
Booker’s first visit to South Carolina this year was in January, when he was the keynote speaker at the South Carolina NAACP’s King Day at the Dome event.
Booker ran for president in 2019 but dropped out in early 2020. He has been a U.S. senator since 2013.

























