President Harris anyone?

[Purplecatshopaholic]

So Biden is gone, and if Kamala replaces him how likely is she to succeed? I gather (from other threads on here) she is not liked? Why is that? And would America vote for a woman?

No, but then it's not up to me. I don't think the US electorate would choose a woman president, let alone one of colour.

My observation is that USA does not like women. Especially women who stray outside of their defined gender roles, so no, I cannot see Kamala Harris being the presidential candidate. Or at least not if they want a chance of winning.

This 👆 unfortunately.

It would be a breath of fresh air though.

Yes, her husband is Jewish as well. There hasn't been a Jewish spouse of a President or VP before.

Tbh I don't know much about Kamala Harris. It'll be interesting for sure to see how this pans out.

My first instinct is that she won't win. But one positive is that Trump hasn't got much time to get a hook into and magnify what it is about her that people don't like eg "sleepy Joe Biden" and "lock her up crooked Hilary Clinton".

I think she is probably the best choice for the Democratst. It doesn't look like they've totally turned against Joe (not that any stauch Joe supporters would back Trump, surely?) but every vote will count. Some people may come out and vote for her as they want a female or black president but equally some will stay home because they don't.

It don't think it's true that she's not liked given the response to her potential/probable nomination.

Racism and sexism aside, there might be two main factors 'against' her

1. She received some negative press for her toughness on criminals and truancy when AG of California. But that's unlikely to sway anyone unsure whether to vote for her or Trump I think.
2. Biden didn't really facilitate her taking on impactful projects as VP so she hasn't been super-prominent.

I think Americans would vote for a woman - Hilary won the popular vote over Trump, and I think Americans have a clearer idea of the threat he poses now than they did in 2016 so (as someone who does not want Trump to win) hopefully Dems will be more strategic this time around. People said Americans wouldn't vote for a black president before Obama was elected, and in general when the Dems make what's seen as a demographically bold choice, they usually win.

If she is the nominee following the Democrats' Convention, hopefully she'll be further endorsed by big hitters such as Obama and Taylor Swift (who endorsed Biden-Harris in 2020).

The Republicans don't seem to have much on her. They just wasted an entire convention week denigrating Biden due to his age and infirmity which is an own goal as the same could now be said about Trump.

All they've come up with so far is:

1. Accusations that she slept her way to the top
2. She is childless
3. That she's a DEI success

That is, completely predictable recourse to sexism and racism.

They're now trying to say dropping Biden is a 'coup' or undemocratic. It's irrelevant conspiracy theory BS, the formal nomination isn't until the convention with the legal registration in September.

She's so much more attractive a prospect than Trump - experienced prosecutor, joyful, attractive, committed to gun control, reproductive rights and better on the environment than most others.

Clinton lost to Trump but she had a history and was somewhat tainted by her husband. She did win the popular vote but her votes were not enough in the swing states.

But since then the US has had a female VP. And republicans have started making it harder for women to get abortions. Surely a number of women who don't normally vote are going to get out and vote against a party trying to stop them having autonomy over their bodies. Surely a number of black, Indian, other minority voters who don't normally vote as they think politics is full of white men are going to get out and vote for someone who more closely represents them. I don't know enough about the ethnic makeup of the swing states to know if this could be enough but she has to be in with a chance. She needs a good VP pick, a few strong endorsements and to keep the current momentum going.

Glass ceilings always seem unbreakable until they are broken.

America: I don't like Trump much but God damn if he don't tell it like it is, so that's who I'm gonna vote for.

This. Also Trump was more of an unknown quantity in 2016.

It would be good, Kamala Harris has a great CV, but I have a feeling it won't happen.

Anyone who might vote for Harris will already vote Democrat. She's not going to turn swing voters- no one who is a flap to g voter swinging to Trump will change their mind to vote for more left leaning candidate. The democrats need to court the middle ground, not head left.

It's not about getting would be Trump voters to vote Harris. It's about getting some of the 1/3 of Americans who don't consistently vote (non white voters vote less consistently than white voters) mobilised to vote for Harris.

Maybe Taylor Swift and Beyoncé can get out the vote. She's not going to be too happy with the single cat lady jibe!

Harris' stepchildren's mother has spoken out about how good a co-parent Harris is:
www.cnn.com/2024/07/24/politics/kerstin-emhoff-defends-kamala-harris-sexism?cid=ios_app

All this misogynistic, anti-abortion rhetoric is going to get female voters out like never before. I am starting to believe she will win.

That's great