Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D.) said California Sen. Kamala Harris (D.) will be "knocking on doors in Iowa," indicating Saturday he expects she will run for president.

Villaraigosa, who is running for Governor of California in 2018, was asked by MSNBC host Hugh Hewitt about Harris, a newly elected senator considered a rising star in the Democratic Party. Hewitt predicted she would be the nominee for the Democrats in 2020.

"Has she got a stake in this governor's race?" Hewitt asked.

"Well, not yet," Villaraigosa said. "I hope she will support my candidacy, but as you say, she is a great candidate. She's going to be knocking on doors in Iowa, I expect. But in any case, I'm focused on this race, not the presidential race."

Iowa refers to the Iowa caucuses, the first major nominating event in presidential election cycles. Barack Obama scored a shocking victory in Iowa in 2008 en route to his successful run for the Democratic nomination and eventually the presidency.

Harris met last month with some of Hillary Clinton's largest donors in the Hamptons, and one fundraiser said anonymously she is planning to run.

"She's running for president. Take it to the bank," one fundraiser said in July. "She's absolutely going to run."