Since U.S. President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the presidential race, all eyes have turned to his vice president, Kamala Harris, as the Democratic Party’s likely candidate. Kamala Harris has spent nearly two decades in public life, achieving many firsts:
– She was the first Black woman elected attorney general in California’s history and the first woman to hold the position.
– She became the first American senator of Indian origin and could become the first Black woman and first Asian American to serve as U.S. president.
What do voters need to know about Harris, who may break one of the most significant glass ceilings in American political life?
Early Life and Background: Family and Roots
Kamala Devi Harris was born on October 20, 1964, in Oakland, California. She is the eldest daughter of Shyamala Gopalan, a cancer researcher from India, and Donald Harris, an economist from Jamaica. Her parents met at the University of California, Berkeley, united by a shared passion for civil rights. They took young Kamala to political protests in a stroller. Her mother named her “Kamala” to reflect her Indian roots, meaning “lotus” and also another name for the Hindu goddess Lakshmi. “A culture that worships goddesses produce strong women,” Gopalan told the Los Angeles Times in 2004.
Education and Integration
In first grade, Kamala attended Thousand Oaks Elementary School, which was in the early stages of integration. For three years, she played with friends on the bus, traveling from a predominantly Black, lower-middle-class neighborhood to a thriving white area.
Former President Donald Trump’s description of Kamala
Vice President Kamala Harris is the most obvious choice to be the Democratic standard-bearer. At 59, she is the daughter of a Jamaican father and an Indian mother. She was the first Black person and woman to serve as California’s attorney general and the first South Asian U.S. senator. She is now the first woman and Black person to serve as vice president.
Policy Focus and Criticisms
During her career as attorney general, Harris was known for her toughness, a trait likely to play a role in a campaign focused on crime and immigration. However, she faced criticism from some progressive Democrats for her tough record on juvenile offenders, raising concerns about the impact on underrepresented groups.
Criticism and Political Challenges:
At a campaign rally, former President Donald Trump called Harris “Laughing Kamala,” mocking her demeanor. Despite these remarks, polls show a significant shift in the presidential race, with Harris leading Trump in three swing states. Harris was the only candidate able to secure Democratic votes after President Biden dropped out due to declining popularity and poor debate performance.
Polling Insights and Harris’ Lead
The latest polls show Harris leading the 78-year-old Trump by four points in Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. This marks a significant change from earlier polls where Trump led Harris and Biden by one or two points. Harris’ entry into the race has reshaped the election landscape, although explaining the weekly shifts remains challenging.
Voter Perceptions of Kamala Harris
At least 49% of likely voters in Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin view Kamala Harris favorably, a level she and Biden hadn’t reached before. Trump’s approval rating rose slightly to 46% in these states, his highest in polling history. Previously, this level was enough to give him a lead over Biden, whose approval fell to 30% in early July.
A positive view of Kamala Harris
At least 49 percent of likely voters in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin said they had a favorable view of Kamala Harris, a level neither Harris nor Biden had in any previous poll. Voters’ views of Trump, however, did not diminish; his approval rating rose slightly to 46 percent in all three states, his highest approval rating in polling history, and in the wake of the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. That level of approval for Trump was previously enough to give him a clear lead over Biden, whose approval rating had fallen to 30 percent in early July.
But at the moment, this percentage is not enough to confront Harris. Biden had ended his re-election campaign and announced his withdrawal from the presidential race weeks ago after Democratic leaders questioned his health and called on him to withdraw from the race for fear of losing to the Republican candidate, against the backdrop of his poor performance in the presidential debate, as I mentioned at the beginning. The basic dynamic of the presidential race was driven by Biden’s unpopularity, which made the elections a referendum on Trump, as millions of voters were left with a painful choice between two candidates they did not want to vote for.
Supporters of President Donald Trump focus on Kamala Harris’s weak political performance during her tenure as vice president. This led some to describe her as having an inspiring personal career and a less inspiring political record, justifying this by saying that she did not succeed in many of the files assigned to her by President Joe Biden, including the files of illegal immigration and the southern border of the United States of America.
Others criticize the lack of any distinction between her foreign policy vision and President Biden’s orientations.
Kamala Harris: A Trailblazer in American Politics
The latest polls found that voters in the three states do not have any major reservations about Harris, who will become the first woman to assume the position of president in the 248-year history of the United States of America, if she wins the elections next November. The famous Economist magazine appeared on its cover with a portrait of Kamala Harris and the headline: What if she wins? Which we will follow over the next few months.
The Democratic National Committee’s statement that Kamala Harris, the US Vice President, received the support of 99% of the 4,567 delegates who cast their votes in a five-day online party process reflected a consensus on her nomination to run in the presidential election scheduled for November 5, 2024, after current President Joe Biden withdrew from running in the elections on July 21, 2024 and supported Harris, due to growing concerns about his health inability to exercise the duties of governance after he appeared in the election debate with former President Donald Trump below the expected level and lacked the focus necessary to compete with the Republican Party candidate Donald Trump, who still enjoys wide popularity that could qualify him to decide the election despite expectations indicating the possibility of Harris winning according to the results of public opinion polls conducted recently
. This raises many questions about the elements supporting Harris’s chances of winning the election race, her political qualifications for leadership, and the challenges she faces, so that the Democrats can obtain a second presidential term in light of the successive failures of the Biden administration in many files, whether at the level of the American interior or at the level of US foreign policy.
Kamala Harris: A Symbol of Progress and Diversity
Kamala Harris’ nomination as the first woman of color in the presidential race enhances the image of the Democratic Party as a defender of human rights and equality, and reflects the United States’ commitment to its democratic values. This candidacy may also enhance America’s image as a dreamland for immigrants, and embodies the American dream in its ideal form. The question remains: Will Harris succeed in being the first woman to assume the presidency of the superpower, fulfilling her mother’s prophecy of always being the first, or will Donald Trump return to become the 47th president of the United States?
