California Gov. Gavin Newsom visits Montgomery

California Gov. Gavin Newsom visits Montgomery, Tuesday, September 1, 2026 – Photo from Mayor’s Young Professional Council

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WAKA) – California Gov. Gavin Newsom is in Montgomery, visiting sites and meeting with Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed.

Last night, members of the Mayor’s Young Professional Council attended a private reception welcoming Newsom to Montgomery.

Alabama Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro), State Sen. Robert Stewart (D-Selma) and other community and state leaders also attended the reception. Newsom was also seen dining downtown at the upscale Italian restaurant Ravello with Mayor Reed.

Today, his schedule called for him to tour the city’s civil rights sites and to meet with students at Alabama State University at a closed-door event.

“I’m proud to host him,” Mayor Reed told Action 8 News. “Proud to have Montgomery residents get a chance to talk to the governor from California and to be able to sit down with him about a number of issues that they’ve seen from housing to affordability to jobs and healthcare and so many others, so it’s been a good conversation. It’s been a good time I think showing off a lot of progress of the city of Montgomery.”

Montgomery is the first stop on Newsom’s “Take It Back” tour, beginning a four-day swing through Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina. Political analysts say he is a possible Democratic candidate for president in 2028.