I’m compiling a list. What went wrong for Harris and Dems in the 2024 presidential campaign?
Please contribute. However, PLEASE DO NOT COMMENT on which one you PREFER– I’m only looking for additions to the list. Why? Because you don’t really know which one is "the answer." No offense intended. It's just that no one does. It’s all opinion and punditry. But the theories are many – and this simply reinforces the point that no one really knows.
{in no particular order}
The bifurcated news media – different groups get different presentation of reality
Failure to navigate the “influencer” social media environment
Biden exited too late to allow for a long-term strategy
Harris generally too cautious in policy positions
Too much focus by Harris campaign on “democracy” (it doesn’t resonate with swing voters)
Gaza policy lost many on the left
Not enough focus on climate (especially didn’t motivate young voters)
Harris hamstrung by Biden connection and his unpopularity
Failure of Harris to break away from Biden on a few key issues
Dems/Biden failure to take on immigration issues earlier
Dems have gone “too far” on cultural divide issues (such as pronouns, transgender issues)
Need more “celebrity” in Dem candidate – Trump is an entertainment celebrity
Too much focus on Trump’s escapades/lies/outrages
Failure to recognize - and deal with inflation - as the number one issue
Not enough anti-corporate populism
Woman can’t win
Lower turnout of Dems / voter suppression?
Dems unable to motivate enough voters of color
PS- Don’t forget this… Trump got less than 50 percent of popular vote this year and his 77 million is far less than Biden’s 81 million in 2020. How does this fit into any narrative around what went wrong for Harris?
I agree with whatisron, and a number of others. Most of those who voted for he-whose-name-shall-not-be spoken probably couldn't have been converted by anything honest. But I feel that a large number of would-have-been Harris voters stood down, for a variety of reasons. Partly it was stuctural - there was no time for a really effective Harris campaign to get through to low-information voters. But she failed disastrously, in my opinion, to address the Israel war issue appropriately and she made more enemies than she gained friends that way. Also, whatever the economic statiscal facts may be, she didn't get over to the working-class white men without college degrees who feel resentful and ill-used by the "elites," meaning liberal Democrats…
Here's 3 potential additions:
1) Many Americans are fearful of immigrants (probably both legal and illegal, but threatening to deport undocumented immigrants generates support).
2) "It's the economy stupid" - even though the evidence doesn't point to a better economy under Trump, he repeatedly claimed it would, and the Democrats seemed unable to mount a persuasive response.
3) People tend to blame politicians for everything that's wrong (regardless of the cause) and give credit sparingly. When things work, they tend to go unnoticed - when sewers work or infrastructure gets renewed or roads get safer... that's "just how things are supposed to be." Trump did an impressive job of drilling that all the things people think are wrong are Biden's…