Howard Schultz says he'll ditch independent campaign if Democrats nominate a centrist

Howard Schultz.
(Image credit: Joshua Lott/Getty Images)

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz will gladly walk away from the 2020 presidential race if Democrats nominate a centrist, he told The Washington Post on Thursday.

Schultz said he plans on spending the next few months exploring a campaign, and told the Post that internal polling suggests should he run as an independent, he's competitive in a three-way race with President Trump and a liberal Democrat, like Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) or Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). "I would reassess the situation if the numbers change as a result of a centrist Democrat winning the nomination," Schultz said.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.