Thanks to Gov. Gavin Newsom, an ancient Greek historian Plutarch might figure prominently in the 2028 U.S. presidential race. 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom delivers his State of the State Address at the State Capitol in Sacramento on Jan. 8, 2026.

Desert Gate, California’s leading 3-year-old racehorse, was the favorite at Santa Anita Park on Feb. 7.

But Plutarch, an unheralded colt who had never won a stakes race, won easily and overnight became a top contender in the 2026 Kentucky Derby

The thoroughbred colt isn’t the only Plutarch making news in California. The ancient Greek historian for whom the horse is named is showing up in the 2028 Democratic presidential primary.

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Plutarch, who lived from around A.D. 50 to around 120, was famous for biographies that examined the inner struggles of great leaders. The most important figures, Plutarch argued, are deeply flawed people who tame their own ambitions to serve the people.

That vision of humanity and its leaders, offered 2,000 years ago, feels very modern.

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“To make no mistakes is not in the power of man,” Plutarch wrote, “but from their errors and mistakes the wise and good learn wisdom for the future.”

So, it is no wonder that Gavin Newsom, a man with more than his share of ambition and flaws, is a major fan. The governor has a longtime habit of quoting Plutarch in private — so much so that aides asked him to cut back.

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